in fact, "the washington post" just complimented me in their endorsement of me. it is also the case that the former governor complimented me two years ago on my leadership on this issue, public safety, saying i was a leader across the state. the fact that the number one killer of our children as gun violence and that we as a country have done nothing about it is shameful. there is an opportunity, i would be in favor of eliminating assault weapons, removing ghost guns from our streets, and in reality, the former governor did not have the courage come as a governor. he in fact veto legislation that would have created a waiting period for long guns and outright refused to sign the ban on ghost guns. he could have helped us on this issue but instead kowtow to the gun lobby and vetoed a band that would have created that waiting period for long guns and did not support it. yeah.

mr. hogan:mr. hogan: it is half-truths and trying to control those -- confuse people. on ghost guns, there was legislation, and there was just not an event for it. we already have the toughest legislation in america, yet it is not stopping 100% increase in murders in places like prince georges county, so we've got to take the shooters off the street. along gun bill was a hunting rifle. nobody in baltimore city had been shooting people with hunting rifles. it was illegal handguns and ghost guns, which i was supportive of. chuck: a quick follow-up, the george floyd justice into what restrict chokeholds and no knock warrants. would you support the act? mr. hogan: i can tell you one thing i'm very concerned about

them and i probably have spoken out more about this than anyone in america. when the defund the police movement started, i was the loudest critic against a, saying you were going to defund the police is like saying you are going to improve education by defunding the school. it was absurd and ridiculous. i passed the first bill in america, a refund of the police initiative, so they could hire more officers, so they can train better, pay for de-escalation techniques. my opponent has cut the prince georges county police, they are down, crime is out of control, 500% increase in carjackings. chuck: ms. alsobrooks, the george floyd justice in policing act, would you support it? ms. alsobrooks: i would. i was law-enforcement, the chief law enforcement officer in prince georges county saw 50% lower crime. i increased police funding by 23%, and when he talks about the ghost guns, he said it

did pass, but it is like so much of his record, because we had a strong democratic legislature, thank god for them, he's not going to annapolis coming going to washington and will not have the same support he had. we could have gotten anything done if he did not have that democratic legislature. chuck: i want to turn to issue of immigration. should prince georges county remain a century city echo ms. alsobrooks: prince georges county is not a sanctuary city. a can't in the executive actually created a policy that violent offenders, that we cooperate with the federal government, that we notify them when we release violent offenders. i also think about this issue, sat in courtrooms and prosecuted gang members who are in ms 13. i have cooperated with the federal government. i know the former governor lied

about my record on this. chuck: how would you describe it? is it something the council did, that they did not want local law enforcement cooperating on everything? ms. alsobrooks: they did not. i change the policy to ensure that people who were accused of gang activity or violence, that we notified the federal government. chuck: ok, you have one minute, mr. hogan. mr. hogan: first of all, with respect to crime in general, i have the unanimous endorsement of the maryland fop and nearly every single law enforcement organization in the state could because they do not think she did such a great job on crime. prince georges county police officers are the ones complaining about how things have gotten out of control. on i.c.e. detainers, it is not true. you are the largest jurisdiction in maryland that refuses to work with federal law-enforcement. when i.c.e. requested a container for a violent rapist, murderer, or gang member, you do not cooperate. your policy is breaking federal law.

chuck: you have 30 seconds. ms. alsobrooks: it is not true, when he says about not cooperating with federal government. it is a live feed i change to the policy. furthermore, i the only person on the stage who stood in a courtroom them and i prosecuted and convicted murderers, rapists, and gang members, and i did so with the police department. i did so with law enforcement. the partnership we created helped us do a tremendous job right now in prince georges county where they have lower crime in every category except one where we are up one point. chuck: i want to give you both one minute to answer this simple question. would you legalize marijuana on a federal level? mr. hogan: yeah. i was for medical marijuana, but i never really considered legalizing recreational marijuana on a national basis. i think many states have already done it, including maryland, but

we had not seen the full impact of that yet. some and law enforcement are concerned that we have a lot of deaths for drunk driving. i think we have to make similar advances before we take a step like that. chuck: so you are not ready to legalize on a federal level? mr. hogan: not at all. ms. alsobrooks: the people of maryland have spoken on this issue and legalize it here. i would support it on a federal level. chuck: you had some hesitation at first. ms. alsobrooks: the hesitation is i think it is an awful idea to have children, i'm deeply concerned about the impact of marijuana on children, so i've always said, whenever adults use , recreationally or otherwise, is for adults to make a decision, but i think we ought to be protective of our children in the same way that we have been with alcohol and other things. we've watched our children suffer, and i think we should be really cautious and be concerned about our children having access to marijuana and other substances. chuck: this next question, one minute for both of you, should

federal government workers still be allowed to work from a one or two days a week, or is it time that they return to the office five days a week? ms. alsobrooks: i support having our federal workers be able to work from home once or twice a week. by the way, i'm the granddaughter is a federal worker who worked very hard to get herself in the federal government. she was a housekeeper, taught herself to type on her refrigerator so she could get that federal job. our federal workers do a tremendous job. we know that if republicans gain control, if they put forward project 2025, which anticipates they would eviscerate the federal workforce, would politicize it, would harm our federal workers, including all 130,000 federal workers who live in the state of maryland, but i will be standing up for our federal workers, which is what i have the endorsement of the afp, the federal government employees union, and i will make sure we are defending and protecting

their rights. chuck: mr. hogan, in question. mr. hogan: with respect to 2025 -- project 2025 come on the leading republican voice against that. i wrote an opinion in "the washington post," and i called out all the crazy things they were trying to do. that is the beauty of having someone in the party being willing to stand up to their leaders. i'm not sure when you've ever stood up to party leaders, but i've done it when it was hard, and i've done it over and over again, and i will continue to. i agree, we have the largest concentration of federal employees, and for them to try to politicize the federal government was just absurd and ridiculous, which is why i was so strong in voicing my opposition bid with respect to getting workers back to work, certainly there are some things that can be done remotely. it has been a disaster for the washington metropolitan area when we have empty buildings everywhere, restaurants close, because very few people are getting back to work. when i was governor, i required people to get back to work,

because you got to public service and interacting with folks and a lot of jobs if you are not there. other things you can do home. chuck: would washington, d.c. gun town economy be a factor whether -- downtown economy be a factor whether workers return to work? to the office? ms. alsobrooks: it is interesting to get the governor sadie criticized the party, -- say he criticized the party. when mitch mcconnell called him, he put the jersey on, says he disagrees with all of these various aspects of it, and the reality is, again, his mere election would empower the people whose policies who says -- who he says he disagrees with so strongly. blasting president kamala harris they had a majority. chuck: next question, i will start with you, mr. hogan. on the issue of transportation, as governor, you brought some

transportation projects involve more, the baltimore's redline. there's been the purple line in the d.c. metro area. how would you handle finding of maryland's transportation objects as senator? would you be a champion of getting more funding? mr. hogan: i'm proud of my record on infrastructure. when i ran for governor, we had crumbling roads and bridges, no money had been invested. that's one of the reasons i got elected, because i promised to do something about that. we move forward on nearly every transportation project across the state, resurfaced almost 90% of the state highway system. no governor has invested more in transit or inroads than when i was governor. when i was chairman of the national governors association, i got all 50 governors to agree on an infrastructure, and that became part of the bipartisan interceptor bill, which i strongly supported. i brought senators and congressmen together to get it

done, and when installed, i pushed republicans and democrats to get the bipartisan infrastructure bill done. republicans only wanted to do roads and bridges. democrats wanted to add $4 trillion of social spending, and we reach an agreement and helped get that deal done, which i think was good for america. ms. alsobrooks: the former governor did something so shameful. we know the number one issue because of state's economic opportunity, and having the opportunity to invest in the redline that would have created not only attracted jobs and opportunities to baltimore but would have allowed people to have access to these opportunities, and he did something of governor in history has ever done in maryland, returned $900 million to the federal government to aspen to redistribute it and send it to other states. this not only crushed that opportunity, but it was unprecedented. furthermore, what we know is that he was not -- i think we need someone who can treat our whole state can i work, conversely, to draw the fbi headquarters to maryland, brain 7500 jobs here, cybersecurity

and technology, i drew 100 million dollars near the new carrollton metro station, and i even worked to attract $400 million to the blue line to create jobs and opportunities. that is what i would do as a senator, not send money back to the federal government. i will be fighting for every part of our state to attract every single dollar we can to the state of maryland. mr. hogan: well, i ran for governor promising not to do the redline. "the washington post" editorial boards that it never made any transportation or economic sense. most people in baltimore did not support it. it was a $7 billion project. it was not going to accomplish much of anything. and we had $900 million. nobody in our transportation fund wanted to move forward on it. what we need to move forward on now is fixing the key bridge, the howard street tunnel, fixing the traffic relief plan that was just killed because the transportation trust fund has been drained and there's no money to build any project. chuck: we have technically come

to the end. one final question for you, mr. hogan, i know you said you wrote in ronald reagan's name, that you've already voted. if you lived in a state where it is up for grabs -- you said the police did not matter in your state --would you have still voted the same way? mr. hogan: i've never voted for someone i don't believe in. there are a an awful lot of people in america they don't feel like these two folks that are at the top of most tickets are the best people to lead america. that's why we have the ability to write in and take whatever decision you make. i don't plan on moving out of maryland, so i will not speculate on what i would do if i were someone else. ms. alsobrooks: i think the decision not to vote in a presidential election for a senator is a disqualifier. this job requires votes, tough boats can if you have to make a decision, and for a person who says he can see a bipartisan way forward but was unable to do the most bipartisan thing ever in an

election year he says he despises their nominee but cannot bring himself to even vote for vice president harris, and in fact, has a chance to vote in three different elections, rather than stand up, do that right thing, though for a democrat, he voted for a deceased individual and that he will do so a good this election. i think it is instructive of the way he would operate as a senator, unable to make tough calls and to go on to do what he declares is bipartisan. this is the most bipartisan thing you can do. chuck: here's the toughest call i will make you both make. ravens or commanders? ms. alsobrooks: commanders. mr. hogan: [laughter] ravens. chuck: we guessed right. ms. alsobrooks: thank you to everyone watching. it has been a great joy for me to have represented our state for the last 27 years that i've been proud to fight for our families on every front.

fighting to keep our communities safe, fighting to go economic opportunity, fighting to ensure we are caring for every part of our community, providing health care. i built mental health facilities, build a cancer center, broke ground on 18 schools and build 10. i have been fighting every single day to preserve not only our freedom but economic opportunity for every member of our family in maryland. i will do that, making sure we are moving forward, and i will support president kamala harris, making sure that she has the majority that she needs in the senate, so that she can get her agenda across and that she can take our country forward, that we can come up together, the value we share, honor human rights, democracy, freedom, integrity, decency, these are what i believe in, and it is what i will fight for every day. thank you so much. chuck: thank you. mr. hogan? mr. hogan: thank you all again, thank you for watching tonight. as i said at the beginning, we are going to hear a lot about

democrat versus republican, red versus blue, but all i really care about is the red, white and blue and blue, and i think that sending more partisan politicians, making washington more partisan and mortified it is not going to help. the country is way off track. i'm completely fed up with politics as usual. if you want to change things in washington, you will not change things by doing the exact same things you always do. i have a proven track record of standing up and bringing people together, having the courage to stand up to the former president, to the current president, and i will do it to the future president and to republicans or democrats. i'm trying to put people over politics and country over party, and i'm asking the voters of maryland to be willing to do the same bank, and i'm asking for their vote. chuck: thank you both. that concludes tonight's debate. we would like to thank the two candidates for participating. would also like to thank maryland public television and this terrific studio for hosting us here. thanks for our panelists, tracy

wilson, debra wilson, and jeff. for all of my colleagues here at nbc news, nbc washington, wbal, i'm chuck todd. good night.

independent carlton bowen are running. this is a live coverage on c-span. [applause] >> that evening i'm glen mills honored to be your moderator this evening. welcome on behalf of the utah debate commission were pleased to come to you tonight from weaver state university crown center tonight were hearing from three candidates who met the qualifications for this debate carlton bowen, john curtis and

caroline. we are looking forward to a lively civil debate tonight with the goal of giving utah voters first-hand exposure to tenants and good information for your decision-making. random drawing held prior to tonight's debate determine the following get the initial response of the first question will alternate turns on the remaining question throughout the debate on that note, candidates let's begin with this question. talk to us about what you are interested in the job and why you believe you are the most qualified person to represent our state as his neck senator? >> welcome to our weaver state university alma mater all of those to help this debate happen, thank you. my name is carlton bowen i'm running to be your u.s. senate replacing mitt romney.

a lifelong republican. iran as an independent american to ensure you have a pro trump conservative option on your ballot. i'm for the u.s. constitution and running on a platform of traditional values, traditional money and our tradition of freedom for traditional values is so simple and basic it's almost silly when he to talk about it. we are at a point in our nation's history or we do need to stand up for what we believe in and be silent no more. so boys are boys and missed girls are girls. in other words only two genders mail and female. marriage is between a man and a woman. >> your minute for the first response is up. we'll have to move on thank you very much mr. curtis. the question goes to you. talk about why you would like to have this job and what qualifies you the most? >> thank you. thank you to the debate commission thank you to my two opponents i look forward to a delightful conversation with you tonight. i was a young man starting out

in business i had a mentor who told me that when you hire, look for a pattern of success. so, with that in mind i share a few highlights from my life. as a young man i wanted to be an entrepreneur by business partners we jumped in had a business, and worked hard to prove we were successful became a world renowned for our products and successfully sold that business after that iran and was successful in being mayor work we learn how to cut budgets, cut government spending and enjoy 94% approval rating. and for the last seven years ever-present utah's third congressional district where i was recently rated number nine most effective legislator and all of congress my office was rated number one. most important, 42 years of marriage, six kids and two grandkids because it's a fun response on this question goes to you. talk about why you want the job and why you are most qualified? it sounds inspired the call for the next generation of leaders

to step up it is our generation is going to have to deal with the issues that congress is failing to address right now. utah is frustrated by the lack of action on most pressing issues and challenges their face with today. things like housing affordability, attacks on our public lands, the lack of real action on immigration, and the air quality of the overall challenges that we are facing. we cannot keep sending the same kind of politicians expecting a different result. it's time to change the people that we send to be our leaders. i am carolina gleich and your candidate for u.s. senate. i got my start working on politics with ted wilson who was governor gary's environmental advisor were compiled to the local, state, federal of us have testify to the house and senate i hope to pass the largest clean energy bill in united states history. if you are ready for change, joint me and please vote

carolina gleich by november 5. >> next topic is the national debt approaching an astounding $36 trillion. cannot comprehend we think about it. quite frankly voters have hurt lipservice from politicians we figure this issue. talk about specific ways you would chip away at this debt. we'd also like to get your ideas whether or not you believe we can get back to balance federall budget. mr. curtis you first. path to washington d.c. is littered with politicians who to setback to fix the deficit. as a matter fact the deficit today is three 100% larger then when we sent the tea party back to washington d.c. to fix it. it's clear that what we're doing is not working. one of the points have been advocating for and washington an d.c. is modeled on hearing the adults called the baseline budget. the beginning of every legislative session they agree that they don't agree on a

budget instead of going to a shutdown or omnibus they continue on lester's budget. if we could enact that one thing in washington think that would do more to bend the spending curve than anything else we do. last year i was successful with thomas massie getting a similar amendment put into it. it was a little bit different had minus 2% penalty. a better option would of been to stay on they just didn't omnibus because of the 2%. that is what i'm working on and hope to be successful at. ask ms. gleich tell us how you would approach national debt. >> i grew up with family value. my parents so their own sleeping bags and outdoor equipment. as a small business owner i carried forward that same ethos of not spending more than a brought in. making sure to save for emergencies. we need the federal government to do the same thing.

right now future generations like mine are going to be saddled with this enormous burden. currently the interest on the federal debt is more than the entire federal budget. the situation is completely unsustainable. as u.s. senate out close the billionaire tax loopholes that allow them like jeff bezos to pay an effective 1% tax rate. and, i would work to end other loopholes for corporations to bring more money in as resin boot. we're not going to achieve this unless we change we sent to be our officials for. >> mr. beau in your thought question requester on a platform of traditional money. our founding fathers envisioned the u.s. constitution still requires. it also means free-market capitalist economy, not crony capitalist not socialism but a true free market were consumers, not the government choose the winners and losers. but also its fiscal

responsibility balance budget reduce the national debt. i agreed mr. curtis were doing is not working because in both parties are in office there both increasing the debt that does not matter if either party controls all the branches of government the debt continues to go up. we need to do something different from when finished my last statement about traditional families because it is important. families are extremely important. we need to make sure -- ideally they have a mom and dad, married tried-and-true don't like, don't cheat, don't steal, don't kill, honesty and integrity still matter. quicksort thank you very much. we will now turn to a question from colin nelson he's a student here. >> utah has long been called the best state to live in. current rising costs are pushing many young utah like myself to leave the state for economic reasons. what specific plans you had to

ensure utah is an affordable for all utah students and young professionals included? ms. gleich that goes to first for. >> thank you for that question but on the campaign drive heard it from a lot of students like yourself i've heard from folks working multiple jobs, going to school full-time and they are still struggling to pay for the rent, or for their mortgages, wrote worried about being one healthcare crisis from losing the roof over the head rate that is not okay. we need to ensure future generations have the same potential to live the american dream. as utah's next senator i would support expanding a first-time homebuyer tax incentive to help people get into the purchase of the first home. i would also support developing federal agency to study how many americans in utah and the ark sprinting home assess what factors are leading people to have to live on the streets? we can do a lot better for young people by addressing this and raising the federal minimum wage up from $7.25 an hour.

i don't know about you but i could not get out of the grocery store for less than $50. if you're getting paid minimum wage that is a full days work. >> mr. bowen. >> i would like to point out this is a state and local issue but not a federal issue but there are a couple of things the federal government does that impact it. this was under the traditional money platform pillar. i get socialism but am also against price controls. but we have with interest rates was a huge part of affordability is a price controlled by the federal reserve. they artificially set with interest rates are. we have seen our interest rates go from 2%, to 7% and a little more than a year's time over the past year. this limits the free-market parr like to see a free market rate which would then work better. also, i do not agree to the state legislation the rewards of builders which are special interest by making state credits only available to new -- for

example for new construction. the other part of this is inflation the federal spending is driving the inflation prevents was driving the housing crisis. quicksort, thank you very much. mr. curtis upon response post to your. >> i'd like to agree a couple of points. let's art the state, city, county role. a lot of this can be done at that level. but there is a role for the federal government. as you mention inflation of the single biggest problems. right now you have to point squarely at the federal government. they taught me i was at byu inflation is a result of too much money on too few goods. what are we doing is a federal government? or turning on the positive faucf spending. and, we're putting our neck on the supply chain. we need to do those two things. specifics as well we just -- me and my staff introduce the homes active. it actually allowed those of us who have ira money currently you can use ira money to invest in real estate. but you cannot do for your own

home or your children's home but my bill would change that. i would also point out senator lee's bill that houses act which uses federal land for housing here utah. that would be a very big deal for. >> thank you very much. definitely a topic on the minds of many plants we have seen her skyrocket seemingly overnight. another contentious topic here in the state of utah was public lands. many disputes between the state and federal government. in fact as of lately's and the pendulum swing depending on which party controls the white house. let's now get into what you dofind a successful partnership when it comes to managing our public lands? and how would you work to foster that question first response to this question goes to you mr. bowen. quicksort of things i would do when elected is to rewrite the antiquities act. this fact has been abused by presidents clinton and obama and

others to set aside millions of acres of utah land. much larger than the entire state of rhode island. it was not done with congressional input. took president obama signing them. president clinton and these monuments locked up public roads used and had privately owned lands inside of them. i really appreciated what president trump did. i am the only pro- trump candidate on the ballot. as might republican opponent a former democrat refuses to endorse president trump and culture his censure and for an impeachment inquiry. i think we can do a lot with federal lands. >> mr. curtis were going to go to you. that does warrant a rebuttal you will get 30 seconds to do that. so let's first get your approach on public lands what would a beneficial partnership between the state and federal look like? and then once we get to this

round i'll give you 30 seconds of rebuttal brick works thank you i don't this any better example of what the right relationship with the federal government in the state government is that every county public lands act. i think as i look back on my time in congress i will be most pleased and proud of that specific act. which of 1.3 million acres and designated where we would graze, where we would recreate where we would extract and where we would protect her. we put that through congressional legislation. so today it is law. the only way you get the true congressional legislation if you have a consensus between the environmental groups for between ranchers, off-road enthusiast, that trumps an antiquities act and that's the way to beat the antiquities act which i agree as being overly abused. it's hard to do but that's congress' job. one of the very most important things we can do as we look at monuments we can solve the back

and forth. >> your thoughts on public land? what's public lands are national treasury. when i was growing up i struggled with anxiety and depression. i found a lot of happiness in healing through my time on your top federal protected public lands. i know so many other people feel the same way these lands are places we should be able to go to find the joy in refreshment from life. right now our public lands are under attack. we have seen a massive effort to transfer public lands to state control. we have the vast majority of the time that happens they are sold to the highest bidder for energy developments, mineral extraction, and so politicians can line their pockets with the sale and privatization of other development or close forever. this is wrong we seen the attacks and antiquities act before continuing the attack is a waste of taxpayer dollars we

need a champion in the u.s. senate who work on the budget and appropriation committee to give birth federal funding they deserve. >> mr. curtis, it was brought up about you specifically. one former democrat and republican. into referring to the impeachment. you have 30 seconds rebuttal time. >> i'm going to fight the urge to rebut that. i don't think it is worth the time of those watching. mike record on president trump is clear. he's doing things in my mind with utah values i'm one 100% behind with the wind at its back. when he's not, i'm not afraid to push back and that's what they want but that i wield my time. >> we are going to move on to water a very important topic in the state of utah with rapid population growth in agriculture demands. how do you balance those multifaceted government cleanly

federal, state local entities to craft what is needed here which suited would be an innovative solution to meet the water needs both urban and rural. but also for long-term sustainability. mr. curtis echoes you. >> i want to start agriculture is not the enemy. i am afraid of not careful we tend to demonize our good friends in agriculture. i actually believe they are not a negative judgment are not the enemy double negative. we need to be listening to them. i would also like to point out this last week we had our caucus summit we talk about these issues literally had a businessman approached me today that i will raise a million dollar for the people who come up with the most innovative water conservation solution at your next summit. think that combination of the private sector, not demonizing using innovation will help us

solve this in a way that will help us grow and prosper the way that we like to do it. what are some innovative ways we can approach the water situation? what's with the top concerns i prefer utah voters is about this. especially what's happening to regret following because right now our great salt lake is not a record low. this expose lakebed with the toxic minerals is causing just a blow. think about my baby nephew i think about his lungs and the poison he is being exposed to. it's not okay. we are not going to dan our way out of this currently 71% of the water diverted from the great salt lake is going to agriculture. not only do we need to speed up a water conservation methods to get more water to the great salt lake, we also need to redefine and re- vamp our entire western way of looking at water for the entire colorado river basin is connected. water is a finite resource.

were not going to get another drop we need action on the climate crisis. we cannot keep's in the same politicians expecting a different result. it's time for the next generation step in. mr. bowen your thoughts on water? sent like to address a couple points at this for the utah legislature passed a law allowing water to be going to the great salt lake to beneficial use. this was actually a big mistake. to carolina gleich's point you cannot legislate the lake level i was alive in utah in the 80s it was at flood stage is there pumping it out into the desert. will be at flood stage is again. the pioneers to recognize the waters of critical resource for utah. a beneficial use for farming, to live and drink. changing that definition to allow a certain amount to go down to the lakes is a very dangerous for our state should. i republican opponent was a former democrat i will point out that. he chaired the party from 2001

until 2002. pass legislation giving federal money to utah water authorities. that's also very dangerous because i just want to remind all kids anytime you specifically refer to have a kid candidate on the stage they will get an additional 30 seconds. i heard both ms. gleich and mr. curtis revert here in a negative way you need to respond too. so mr. curtis we will give you 30 seconds for quick negative about being a former democrat if you were? >> whether it's negative or not it warrants a were bottle. you have 30 seconds for that. >> i am very proud of everything i've done the past. i have worked hard consistently throughout my life promote what i call utah values. in three decades ago, i did work within the democratic party.

because i thought the republican party without anyone having a chance to vote on is done in back rooms there are lots of reasons but i cannot explain 30 seconds. if you are damning somebody because they were once a democrat you have to rule out donald trump. you have to rule out ronald reagan. we are going to have to move on. >> he did mention my name. i will give you 30 seconds. >> okay, great. my problem with being a democrat, getting elected as a republican. but on several key issues continued to vote like a democrat. he mentioned climate is his main issue. this is more of an issue of the left is very involved in the claimant going into the un climate caucuses which have an agenda that's harmful to you tongs. it's not for the party affiliation it's what that represents after being elected as a republican.

>> ms. gleich? >> i like to chime in and illustrate this is extremism. this is something voters of utah are most concerned about. it's not about who marries who or who's in bathroom people can go too. that's not the role the government. i feel our current leadership is taking us down a dangerous path. some who study risk and risk. it's time for the next generation to come in to get our country and state back on track. >> this conversation leads quite nicely to our next topic and that his political climate of the day. utah voters listing it as one of their top concerns when it comes to political discord in this year's election. take a look at some things that have gone on in the senate. there have been some pretty harsh partisan divide. particularly when it comes to

nominations, the filibuster rules and also spending bills. so, as senator how would you work to bridge" divides? ms. gleich the first response goes to you. >> we have seen extreme level of polarization. i think back to what i got my start working in government working for ted wilson democratic environmental advisor. an absolute legend for utah working for republican administration for governor gary herbert. i saw a beautiful example of people coming together do not always agree on things. sitting down, finding common ground in finding a path or. i know is a voter in citizen i don't think about issues as red or blue i do not attach d or are things like clear about likely air, claimant action a reasonable government solves problems. one of the things i think is leading to that office today and

the extremism of the republican party pulled to the right by the bishop of donald trump. that is something i will continue to stand up to and get back to addressing the issues that we need solutions on. >> your thoughts on how you would work to bridge that? >> number one having this agreement does not mean you're being disagreeable. just because i bring up things i'm not doing it and disagreeable way is very factual so it's very appropriate. i disagree utah voters don't care about values. we care a lot for bc men competing women's force we see women getting injured. we see title ix arbitrarily interpreted by the biden administration to mean including the men can compete in women's sports their intent of that legislation was for women to be able to compete against women. these are very relevant issues.

this seat, this is mitt romney's old seats. mr. prominent was the only republican of the entire house houseor senate to vote to impeah donald trump in 2020. i think most utah ones didn't like that. i think he was very out of touch with what they expected that u.s. senator to be i am concerned my gop opponent who is a former democrat will be a mitt romney 2.0. >> the question goes to you. once again mentioned by name you will get a thirty second rebuttal as well for. >> will just start. i think what you are seeing a little bit of this back-and-forth. although not terrible is exactly what utah voters are tired of. it makes a great campaign slogan governing. i would love to point out i just won a republican primary for contenders almost 50% of the vote. to govern and not campaigns. you like to solve issues for a pessimist 20 bills into law the

seven years have been in congress. almost all of that time his venn in a divided congress. that means you have to get democrats. you have to get republicans defined the cross-section where they can both agree to that legislation. i pointed out the public lands bill. i will switch and mary in my 30 seconds because carlton is bent on this former democrat thing. utah voters get to decide who represents their values. i will point out again but thatalmost half of all republics picked me in a four-way republican primary because i represent their values. nobody on this stage is known better to the voters and i am. i like that lane. i like where i'm at. i think the voters like it and once again they will get to decide in a couple of weeks if that's in harmony with their values precautions as mentioned by name? >> is mentioned twice by name for. >> i did not hear carlton bowen

come out of that frequency said carlton twice. >> we are going to move on. we have a student hear from weaver state university is a very important question that she wants aspen were going to move on to that. her name is marina and the floor is yours. >> and work with weaver state boats to register, prepare for campus for julie the younger eligible should be more involved in the voting system and how do you plan to reach them so they stay engaged? >> mr. bowen you are first paid. >> as of the younger generation has a lot of potential to influence elections. i think there's a lot of great people in the younger generation that do not register to vote and do not vote. i would encourage them to do so. there's a? of how to reach this generation. other than video games left let her through social media. depending on the jumper gender it may be because there are

differences. although i have a daughter-in-law who is an excellent game at. [laughter] i think it is important to reach out to the younger generation. for them to be involved. you talked earlier about portico climates. on the campaign trail i've had an opportunity and i know some people are triggered you bring up the word trump and reason goes out of their head. they get emotional. they walk away. that is in fact impacting the younger generation. there love people that are free just be cap on issues like values because they feel like they will be silenced. when basically reject it which is unfortunate. >> thank you for your response. click select a point of the third congressional district which i currently represent is the youngest district in the country. here in utah is a big deal

social media is a big part of that. that me and my team does on social media to connect too. by reach out to people. with understand the issues it's a big worry too many people in the climate has been brought up that's been a big issue to me with got to be able to talk about these things in a way they relate to them. i fear that too often my party just complains about not being engaged in does not spend enough time explaining our principles and why we feel the way we do. and hopefully do a better job at that. >> the biggest both of my campaign is to inspire young people to get more involved politically. to inspire the next generation of leaders to step up and run for office. i am the average age of america

utah's youngest state in the nation for where the fastest growing states of the nation. meanwhile the average age of the united states senate is 65. it's more in touch with the issues young people are facing today. sure young people have access to government in a problem-solving tool. when you get your drivers license but i will work to have universal vote by mail using a great model that we have here in utah. i will pass -- voting day, election day a national holiday also pass a comprehensive campaign finance reform to end the citizens united and ensure corporations and billionaires cannot buy an election. >> we referred to a little earlier nomination specifically. which is a responsibility of the senate. let's dig deeper to judges. how they are nominated and more

importantly confirmed by the senate. it was not that long ago judges could go before the senate. talk about what it is the most important qualities you would look for whether or not you give them your confirmation vote this goes to mr. curtis first. >> obviously for me number one qualification is do they understand the constitution? are they committed to the constitution will they interpret the constitution and the way the founders intended rather than the whims of the political. that's very important for me. if there is a second characteristic it would be the character of that individual. and then of course their service and their education and the other things play into it. number one for me is constitution and the inherence of the constitution intended by our founders. >> i firmly believe the founding foundingfathers vision and the

separation of powers the check and balance overseeing the executive judicial and legislative branches. currently our supreme court has been radicalized by the appointment of these nominees. we have seen troubling decisions that are impacting our everyday lives that are eroding the separation of powers especially on the executive branch but we should all be deeply troubled by the chevron decision by the presidential immunity decision and the overturning of roe versus wade with the dobbs decision. some of the things i would do to do that are to enact a biting code of ethics for supreme court justices and to enact 18 year supreme court justice term limits. to ensure these leaders are not being influenced by billionaires, special interest groups or other types of corruption. >> if you were the next u.s.

senator from utah, how would you assess a judge? >> i would use the u.s. constitution. i will note that u.s. constitution had very few rules for the federal government. the founding fathers established our constitution to basically provide for national defense and diplomacy. what my opponents are proposing and what they have voted for is way more than that as far as what they fund. we said about the supreme court rulings. we think the supreme court rulings are excellent herby think the justices have been put on the bench are applying the text of the constitution. it's the main criteria is much different than my opponents.

>> i'm going to take a follow up on this went real quick. we're going to have 30 seconds each. potential terms and limits when it comes to the supreme court would you support those or not and way their not in harmony with individuals belief somehow it is the fault of the supreme court. i join carlton the chevron doctrine is incredibly important decision. not just for the united states but for utah. a federal agencies have grown way out of control and that doctrine is one way to ring the men i do not support term limits for them. do not support increasing or impacting the court. and the supreme court has done for the last few years. i have not agree with all of their decisions.

>> i absently support term limits for our supreme court justices. by foreign actors corporations billionaires, we need to make it easier to have new leaders step up so we get fresh ideas we get better leadership representation for. >> mr. bowen your thoughts for. >> u.s. constitution that establishes the judiciary is for life. had to do a constitutional memo to change that and i'm opposed to that. we just need to have good betting by the u.s. senate which is one of the primary roles of the senate to make sure the judges are going to vote the weight they say that we understand their judicial philosophy. i am opposed to changing the constitution to do that.

>> we are going to dip into foreign policy. there are several global hotspots. talk to us about who you think or what you think is the greatest threat to the united states interest currently? what specific actions will be taken to manage that. ms. gleich it does to you first for. >> on the most abiding moments of my life when at the opportunity to visit an aircraft carrier deployed in the adriatic sea. i was inspired to go on that trip by my father who was a career air force veteran put onn this aircraft carrier felt enormous pride in the young men and women that serve and worked with nato countries around to ensure we are standing up to the rise of dictators nationally. and internationally for what worries me is seeing the party at the republican party trying to get the u.s. to withdrawal from nato.

that will harm our standing. it will be a huge in fadiman fruit democracy worldwide. i'm deeply troubled by the rise of authoritarian regime around the world. we need to stay in nato and stay with our democratic allies around the world. >> mr. bowen your thoughts on the biggest threat to united states globally? >> let me say to start off but since i did not get include in my opening statement is that i served in the 96 air force honorably. and my wife of 37 years, linda and i who we have six children of 14 grandchildren, have lived in texas, virginia, and south korea. so i disagreed the republican dn party has been trying to withdraw from nato. i think president trump very wisely was getting nato member countries to increase their donations to nato. i think he helped today to a lot. and again i am the only pro- term candidate.

i really support what our president has done in the past and what he will do again in the future. i do not know why a republican candidate for u.s. senate from utah would not endorse our president trump the republican nominee for president. >> mr. curtis your thoughts and the biggest globalist threat to our interest? wessel could be a long-term or short-term. for me long-term is china. i lived in taiwan for three years. i speak mandarin i was on the chinese task force in the house of representatives. while i dearly love the chinese people and the chinese culture i am very worried about their leaders, the dictatorship they are as hard on their own people as they are in other people. our relationship with china is severely broken and when to fix that relationship. we don't have the option of decoupling we need to fix the relationship. that poses the greatest threat. short term i'm worried about you ukraine and the middle east. had the chance to live in

jerusalem when jimmy carter signed the peace accord is there in my office the three of them shaking hands which people said would never happen. bottom line we have to distinguish who are friends and who are our enemies. iran is not our friendship. israel is our friend. hamas is not her friends. we've got to be very clear putin is not our friends but we've got to be clear who are our friends and who are not too. >> immigration as our next topic. a big concern also for voters. it has really been a focus of campaigns here at the state level and the national level. congress has talked about but struggled to pass legislation when it comes to immigration. so, as a senator at west must be included in legislation for you to be able to support it? but would be a deal killer? >> thank you. i can tie that i support legal immigration i'm opposed to illegal immigration but we need

to enforce the law. the problem with immigration is not that our laws are effective. we are enforcing our laws. we will note my republican opponent was a former democrat sponsored a bill hr 6637 that basically provided amnesty for illegal immigrants. and i am opposed to amnesty but you asked what i would not include. i would not include amnesty. it encourages people to break the law again in the future. it is a huge a problem for if you do amnesty as a compromise you continue to have the problem be worse more and more down the road. >> mr. curtis, the question goes to you but when it comes to immigration what would legislation need to include and what will be an deal killer because her. >> could i ask if you question more to deal with amnesty. >> guess if you would like but let's get your answer first. >> i think what you are seeing is politicking versus governing.

it's very easy to stand back and say amnesty. it's very easy to stand back and say whatever we did not vote for this bill or that bill. the reality of it is we have a broken border and we have a broken immigration system. and anybody who puts their neck out and tries to put a plan for it has their head whacked off by the political extremes as you alluded to. i agree with you there are political extremes. let me tell you what amnesty is by his definition according to this bill. in the bill that i support it and i'm proud to support is called the dignity act is one of the best answers i have seen it. it had a provision that said if you are here illegally for the next 10 years you have to pay a $1000 fine every year. you have to report to the police and designate you came into this country illegally. you have to demonstrate english proficiency. and at the end of 10 years you go into an another five-year program if bush proficiency.

at the end of 15 years after you paid 10,000 dollars 2% you are now eligible to go to the end of the line. it's called amnesty. you can see what were not making progress on us in washington d.c. we've got to get away from this narrative. we could solve this in an afternoon. >> we need to wrap that up or give you a minute 30 to answer that prayer. >> thank you. all right ms. gleich the question is yours i will be lenient with your time as well. >> we need to tackle this issue. we need to solve this issue. we need to secure the border where it's economically and environmentally feasible to do so. we need to find more border agents me too deploy modern technology to stop the influx of fentanyl. beyond that we need to provide immigrants, that's it immigrants

with legal pathway to citizenship. and folks in congress have the opportunity to do that but they failed to take action but i would pass the bipartisan immigration bill that congress works for over a month on. beyond that we need to put ourselves in our immigrant communities two. utah was founded by people who came here to find a better life for themselves and their families. i would expect our officials and our leaders would have more kindness and compassion in our hearts to how we treat our immigrant communities. we need to do more to ensure they feel safe. this we see in iran are immigrants less about we cannot go back to the trump era family separation. those are inhumane and cruel. i feel strongly there immigrant communities deserve better. >> could i get a rebuttal to

that as she referred to ms. hateful? >> i did not hear her refer to u.s. hateful. >> i didn't hear it as though she was directed specifically at you. think of a conversation with those who work here to hear from you as a kid i like to make the judgment call and move onto the on to thenext topic. and that is abortion. u.s. supreme court overturning roe v wade. roe v wade living to the states to decide. what we have seen since them as a patchwork of laws throughout our country. many because of that are calling for federal legislation to make a standard across the board. do you believe that is the way to go? or do you support it at the state level? this one will first go to mr. curtis. >> people know i'm absolute pro-life. but we don't talk about it enough that i am also pro life

of the mother. i'm also pro life of the baby after it is born. the supreme court did make a decision that sent that to the states and my support that decision i believe that's where it needs to be. i also think that's what we are going to find the most thoughtful conversation about how to deal with this. let's be honest republican scent of talk about the babies incessantly. democrats is a stereotype into talk about the mother's incessantly. both of those are important. we have got to find the common ground between those. i think that is best done on a state level. i think what you are seeing here in utah there is a vast agreement we need exceptions for the life of the mother for rape, for incest and we have to have this awful conversation of the overall health of the mother altogether are important conversations that will happen better on the state level. >> would you support a national standard or you believe it's a best handle of the state level? >> and c overturning of roe versus wade two years ago we

have seen dire unintended consequences of the dobbs decision. we've seen one in five ob/gyn considerately think it we've seen an increase of the number of women who die during childbirth. we've also seen the spread into an attack on ivf. my husband rob and i may be the only way we can start a family in the future. my opponent has said i wish as a man i did not have to make these decisions. well, representative curtis you don't. it's long past time to end this drug reaches into her most personal intimate decision. utah deserved a u.s. senator that trusted families to make the best decisions for themselves, free from government intervention. >> mr. bowen your thoughts? >> are several things to unpack here. a baby's heart is beating by six weeks. it has its own blood supply which is different from the mother's blood. by 10 weeks a baby is fully

formed 10 fingers, 10 toes, organs, the entire child. abortion ends a human life without that human life having any input into it. i'm one 100% opposed abortion. now my republican opponent was a former democrat said he is pro-life on i'm glad to hear that because there is a recent interview on one of his snappers i'm glad to hear that he is. to get to what my other opponent was talking about with abortion, the leftist rhetoric is harming women. there is no state in the united states that where you cannot get healthcare for a miscarriage from an abortion bear but there are women who are afraid to get it paid the same with ivf. that's not an abortion related issue. >> or mr. curtis in ms. gleich are both specifically mentioned ms. curtis we will start with 30 seconds for you and then ms. gleich 30 seconds for your projects first of all the call is not as you quoted for the

quote was i wish there were more women in elected office to help us make this decision. and i stand by that. i wish that were true. second of all i think what you are hearing from both of my opponents is and why this is so divisive. let's agree to begin with it's very divisive. when you throw out things like i don't support idf how ludicrous is that i don't know anybody does not support ivf improve you it is pro-life. i think it's time we dial down the rhetoric that we have serious conversation about how to move forward. >> okay ms. gleich? >> my opponent and other house republicans that would effectively ban ivf life begins at conception project 2025 agenda would defund planned parenthood's around the country. now, planned parenthood is where people go to receive treatment for std to get cancer screenings to be seen for a barren, cervical and other types of cancers. and so these decisions will have

a dire effect on american's ability to receive life-saving or productive healthcare. because abortion is healthcare. >> are getting close to time for closing same are going to go to a few quick lightning round questions. we will give you about 15 seconds each on these. the first one, is the federal government doing all it can to provide assistance after natural disasters? this one goes to ms. gleich first. >> i would say no. just last week we sought 200 americans die and the aftermath of helene. our current politicians have voted against funding for fema. so no i don't believe we are and we are not doing enough to address the climate crisis. all right mr. bowen? >> about self-government. response to help each other out. and if fema is preventing people from doing that there's no constitutional authorization for fema to go in and take charge and prevent other people from helping. absolutely no we are doing a poor job.

>> fema is availing for i wish everybody could go watch rhonda sanchez be interviewed about his response. he was ready. his state was ready they had tens of thousands of utility workers ready to go to work. i suspect you child did the same thing we cannot just run the federal government too. >> next question we are quickly approaching i want to remind you that are time for closing statements. day one, if you get elected to this going to office what would be your first priority at your first line mr. bowen? because it's really important to audit the fed who have federal reserve organization that's never been audited by congress. it handles a lot of money. a lot of potential for corruption. >> 10 seconds you mr. curtis? hex permanent reform it's one of the most impediments to our national security to our energy future, so clearly reform. >> ending fossil fuel subsidies. making polluters pay devastating

impact of the climate crisis. >> of not reach the end of this debate debate and branding random drawing held early the first payment will go to mr. curtis one minute to mr. curtis for your closing topic works thank you. you've done a great job tonight thanks the debate the prick commission, thanks her audience but thanks to the voters of utah. if you watch me closely you will know this is not an easy decision to run for this office. i wanted to know myself that i could be the type of senator that you would like me too be. and they want you to know after serious thought and reflection are several things i'm certain of. the founders believed we should serve for a season. if i'm fortunate to serve you, my season will be hallmarked by stewardship and service. i want you to know that your issues will be my issues. your agenda will be my agenda. my voice will be to amplify your

voice. my vote will be to reflect our values together we can bring washington d.c. closer to it utah values. more importantly, make our country the type of country we needed to be for our children for our grandchildren. >> ms. gleich your closing statement too. >> about this campaign i've had the opportunity to travel estate and hear from you. i've heard you, your top right you are concerned about housing, about paying your rent and mortgage. and about being one healthcare crisis away from losing the roof of your head. i have heard from young people who have debilitating anxiety about the future of our planet. about the air quality. i've heard concerns about the attacks on our public lands and the lack of access to lifesaving reproductive healthcare. you deserve a leader that truly reflects the will of the people. i am an environmental advocate. i reduce, reuse, recycle but we cannot keep recycling the same old politicians expect them to get out of this mess.

i'd sign for the new generation to step up. if you feel like utah is headed in the wrong direction, we need to ask ourselves a question. what you call a politician's been in office too long? you call them home. representative curtis it's time for you to come home. to send the next generation in. >> that is your minute. mr. bowen will end with you one minute. >> this race is about who will replace a mitt romney to represent utah in the u.s. senate. there is a democrat on the ballots for there is a former democrat on the ballot, who while is a republican has refused to endorse his own parties and presidential nominee. who, like a democrat -- much like the democrats did call for a century and for an impeachment investigation. his main cause and the u.s. senate as a republican has been climate change. kind of like the democrats over the green new deal? who was one of only a few republicans to side with joe

biden in exempting china from some trade tariffs. and then there is in me a conservative approach trump independent american who is for the u.s. constitution. for traditional values, for traditional money and for our tradition of freedom. if you want something different than what you've had for the last six years and that u.s. senate i urge you to have the courage to do something different. vote independent, american carlton bowen for senate. >> thank you candidates but we appreciate being your time and for participating but also your dedication to public service and a willingness to step up in this matter. we appreciate that greatly. we do want to remind all of you election days to state november 5 to be sure to contact your county clerk to get any questions about how to make your vote counts in this year's election. we greatly appreciate state university for donating the browning center for this debate. we are also grateful larry h and gayle miller foundation.

in the george s and dolores story eccles foundation for their generous support. this debate and others are available online. you can find it utah debate commission.org. it has been my honor to serve as your moderator tonight. i appreciate the opportunity and really want to remind you get out and vote. make your voice heard. have a great night, everyone. aa

public media. this is live coverage on c-span. moderator: incumbent democrat mary peltola and republican challenger nick begich. while there are four candidates on this year's ballot we invited only the two to earn 5% of the boat during the open primary. moderator: both campaigns have agreed on the following rules. questions have time limits and moderators may ask follow-up actions based on answers. everyone gets equal time for

regular questions and follow-ups, and a bell will sound when your time is up. moderator: the candidates will have the opportunity to ask questions of each other. moderator: we would also like to hear from you, the audience. write the issues that matter the most to you. if you were watching on tv or online scan the qr code on your screen. go to alaskapublic.org/poll. let's introduce the candidates. incumbent democrat mary peltola has served as a representative since 2022 and is the first alaska native member of congress. before that she was a alaska house of representatives. republican candidate nick begich is an alaska businessman who comes from a family of alaska politicians and started several businesses and work for the ford motor company, alaska policy

forum and served as a board director for nta. on to the questions. we'll start with one of the day's top stories, the response to hurricane milton. one week after another major hurricane hit florida. we know climate change is causing more extreme weather events everywhere including alaska. this is making homeowners insurance less affordable and in some states increasingly unavailable. does the federal government have a role to play in solving this problem? mr. begich, you will go first. mr. begich: i believe we need to do more to lower insurance rates, and the first thing we can do is encourage competition. right now the regulation to be an insurer is quite high, because you have two layers of insurance. you have the retail insurer and the reinsurer. for people to become a reinsurer

it is difficult and drives the cost of insurance up by 15% to 30%, so it is important we lower the barriers to competition in the insurance marketplace. if we do that we will have lower rates for insurance consumers. moderator: thank you. representative peltola, you have one minute. rep. peltola: my heart goes out to the people who are experiencing hurricanes at this point, and it seems as if it was one right after another. alaska is no stranger to our own natural disasters. we have had landslides in historic storied communities that have been deadly. we have had flooding in juneau on august 5, at the same year as last year. two homes were impacted. this year 300 homes were impacted, and one of the things that we need to understand is that fema is currently funded to

cover 16 natural disasters a year. year after year we have seen double, sometimes triple that amount. we have got to make sure our homes in alaska are able to get coverage for flood insurance, landslide insurance as well as earthquake insurance and money for all disasters. moderator: thank you. one of the biggest issues for our current congress, the israel-hamas war turning into her regional crisis and the ongoing russia-ukraine war. if elected will you continue to fund support for ukraine and israel? rep. peltola: the conflict in palestine and gaza is terrible. it is a real humanitarian crisis , and as a mother of seven and a grandmother of two i want peace and prosperity everywhere. i think that it is really important that we continue to

provide humanitarian relief wherever we can. we need to make sure people are getting adequate amounts of food and water and we are preventing as many civilians from being killed if possible. this region has a long and bloody history. i am spending a lot of time listening to people who are experts in this field. i think it is important we support ukraine and the fight against russia. they are fighting our war in many ways, and i with the efforts they are making. i think we need to make sure any aid going to gaza is for humanitarian purposes only. moderator: mr. begich, your turn. rep. peltola: we need to continue to support our ally in the middle east, israel. they are a counterweight to terrorism in that region of the world. if we do not confront terrorism there terrorism will confront us here, so it is important to

continue to support israel in their efforts to stamp out terrorism in the region. i also think we need to prioritize the needs of americans first. we were recently in kodiak for a fisheries debate, and one of the things i have heard from people in the fishing industry in our state, fishing families that have been relying on disaster relief payments waiting up to six years for those payments to be received. we accelerated $200 billion for aid to ukraine but not accelerating the needs of americans. i want to make sure we are putting the needs of americans first, we are not putting other people's wars on our credit card expecting future generations to pay for them. moderator: mr. begich, you have mentioned to cryptocurrency as a way to protect american financial sovereignty. what role are you suggesting cryptocurrency should ablate in u.s. and the alaskan economy? rep. peltola: i think cryptocurrency provides a suite

of opportunities as a hedge si class for a devalued dollar. what we have seen with the united states congress over the last many decades is a lack of discipline, and that has resulted in the inflation we are experiencing today. it is important to have a backup plan, and i think cryptocurrency can provide that. it is a suite of innovative technologies i am excited about and provides a great alternative in the long run. moderator: representative peltola, do you believe predicaments he has a role to play in the alaska u.s. economies? mr. begich: i believe predicaments he has a place in the american economy and alaskan economy. we need to be supporting innovation wherever we see it. if there are more innovative ways to have currency, we need to capitalize on that. if you go to any of the remote villages, what you see often is

the same check being transferred around the same community 50 times sometimes. that is the kind of unfortunate situation we have been many remote bases. moderator: we want to hear from you about what issues met at the most. follow the qr code on your screen or go to alaskapubli c.org/poll and fill out a survey about your priorities as a voter. let's talk about alaska's housing crisis. this question is for both of you. between 2020 and 2023 the average price of a home and alaska climbed to 20%. what specific policies would you support to make housing more affordable in alaska? rep. peltola: one of the things i need to make sure we are doing is keeping the federal government open. many programs are available for veterans, first time home buyers.

we need to make sure we do not have a close federal government impeding those kinds of transfers. i think homelessness is a huge problem in alaska, and we see it here in anchorage. 40% of alaska's oma's -- homeless population are children. need to be working collaboratively to alleviate on my situation we have right now. i think that we need to be looking at energy, utilities and figuring out ways to stream like that. i think permitting is a huge problem. i think we need to have more land available from anyone who will partner and make sure that we are providing low-interest loans for future homeowners. moderator: mr. begich, you have one minute. mr. begich: in alaska the issue is exacerbated because so many

of our lands are not in private hands. there is land available if it will be unlocked from our federal government, and we need to do more to unlock federal government lands that they hold currently in alaska and make those available to people who would like to build homes. i think we do have a challenge. we talk about the prices of homes to being up 20%, that the interest rates exacerbate that. when you look at the average home payment in alaska it is up over 100%, and that is a huge problem for first-time homebuyers. i have met with many young people across alaska who said i saved, i did everything right, i have got my money for a down payment but now i cannot afford my payment for the home once i put my down payment down, so it is important we have lower interest rates to facilitate first-time homebuyers. moderator: how do you get those lower interest rates then? mr. begich: i think pressure has

to be mounted on the federal reserve. what we saw was their reaction, their response to a heated up economy was to raise interest rates. in this case i do not think it was the appropriate one, because the root cause of the inflation we have seen is excess money printing by the federal reserve. the federal reserve went out in order to finance access to government debt, they printed money to do that. they should have pulled liquidity by selling holdings that they had. moderator: congresswoman peltola, i went to give you 30 seconds into -- as well. rep. peltola: the government provides many different categories of home loans and we need to look at broadening those. it is important we have interest rates people can afford. i do not agree with the proposal to give first-time homebuyers at $25,000 check. i think that will exacerbate the

problem. i think we need to be looking at interest rates. moderator: a portion have turn into one of this election's biggest issues. there have been attempts in congress to codify roe v. wade after the u.s. supreme court overturned the decision in 2022. would you support a federal ban on or a guarantee for the right to an abortion? mr. begich: i would not support a federal ban or guarantee. we need this decision with the states, and i do not think people in alaska one folks in d.c. deciding this issue for them. they are 1000 miles away from us. we can make our own decisions here in alaska, and when we do we do a great job. i believe in local control. i would not support a ban or guarantee either way. moderator: thank you. ms. peltola?

rep. peltola: i absolutely do not support a ban and i believe in reproductive rights. i trust women and their doctors. i do not think politicians have any business being in this discussion. antichoice extremists are committed to making sure there is a majority in congress who will end abortion across our nation, and nobody wants that. it should be safe, legal, and rare. we should be doing everything we can to prevent unwanted pregnancies and protecting the lives of women to have complicated medical situations. being pregnant and delivering a baby is one of the most lethal things a woman can do in our lifetime. this is one of the deadliest propositions a woman can undertake. it is not anyone's place in d.c. or the state legislature to get

between a woman and her doctor. moderator: we have video questions. this first question comes from amelia. >> i am amelia brooks, a senior at a secondary school and a member of anchorage youth vote initiative of the league of women voters of anchorage. local youth pointed out school shootings are an ongoing tragedy across the country. what adventures would you take to help ensure the safety of schools and youth serving communities? how do you protect both the second amendment as well as our schools and communities? moderator: congresswoman peltola? rep. peltola: this is a big concern. the state of alaska experienced the first school shooting in the nation, and now they happen so frequently that there are multiple in a week. the common thread among these

terrible tragedies is a person, somebody who is inflicting this who is isolated, who does not feel seen or heard. we need to make sure that every child in our community, every child in our school feel seen and heard. we need to make sure we do not have people in isolation and we need to do as much as we can as gunowners to protect and safeguard guns and ammunition's from getting in the wrong hands. for those of us who grew up with firearms in our home hunting, we know the importance of gun safety. we know you did not ever point a gun at another person, and this is something we have got to get our arms around. moderator: mr. begich? mr. begich: the right if the people to keep it to bear arms shall not be infringed, right? it is something i believe strongly in. i have had the opportunity to

travel across the state and there are a number of competitive youth shooting leagues that they would like to train youth on gun safety and responsible firearm ownership, and that is important and something we need to continue to invest in. there was a time here during the harris-biden regime over the last few years, they actually said and pushed for the regulation that school district that supported these programs and archery programs would be denied funding for their schools if they continue these programs. that is wrong. our delegation push back on it, and i am proud of that, but at the end of the day i believe training, responsible firearm ownership at an early age is a great way to push back against the risk. moderator: i went to give you 30 seconds to follow up there. would you support any sort of limits, red flag laws, any sort of limits, background checks? mr. begich: i do not support red

flag laws, and i am on the record. i do not think we need to create databases to create databases of people who own firearms in our nation. i think that is a slippery slope that leads ultimately to the erosion of our second amendment rights. moderator: representative peltola, would you like to follow-up? would you support any limitations? rep. peltola: i think we need to look at what is already on the books. we already have a system that is supposed to protect domestic violence victims. often times that does not happen. many of the perpetrators who have executed these terrible executions, there have been warning signs, and those warning signs were ignored. i think we need to look at all of the ways we can protect our community, and we need to have trust and a discussion among all user groups, but the rest of the

trust. moderator: let's get specific about mental health resources. according to the national alliance on mental illness more than 40% of adults in alaska reported symptoms of anxiety or depression, but over 25% of them were unable to get needed counseling or therapy in 2021. name concrete steps you could take in congress to increase the availability of mental health care in alaska? mr. begich: i think we see the effects of an untreated mental health population with the homelessness crisis we are experiencing in alaska. so many of the people going through homelessness are struggling with mental health issues, and i believe that right now what we are seeing is all of these people that are on the streets today, they could have been helped at a much earlier point, and it would have cost society less, made their lives better. we have got to do a better job

of early detection and intervention of mental health issues, and that is something we need to invest in both as a state and the nation. i think we also need to make sure we are investing in workforce development for mental health professionals. right now it is difficult in alaska to find sufficient numbers of mental health professionals to treat a number of people reaching out for help, and when they cannot find that help that they turned to drugs, behavioral characteristics that are not conducive to a solid society. moderator: congresswoman peltola , you have one minute. rep. peltola: one of the key pieces to this is to make sure we have good internet throughout the state. we have invested $2 billion. we are improving our broad event across the state. i know that some people think there is a stigma in talking about mental health, in seeking out somebody to talk to about your mental health. i think that we need to start talking about wellness, and many

of our young people have overcome this stigma. in younger generations the same stigma is not there that is been there in the past. we need to make sure we have wellness programs in all of our schools at all levels. we need to help parents find tools to promote wellness for their kids. it is also important we are providing wellness for our soldiers and veterans. these are some of our most vulnerable people as well as our young people. moderator: a follow-up on that when with both of you. how do we get these programs? and how do we pay for these? rep. peltola: i was even thinking about mental health is not just inpatient beds. it is important all of us be working on our mental health especially as you live in a state with as much darkness as we have been potential isolation. what was the question again?

moderator: how would you pay for them? rep. peltola: we need treatment beds in a host of areas. alcohol treatment, opioid treatment, mental health treatment. moderator: thank you. mr. begich. mr. begich: the founders of rsa -- of our state foresaw this issue so they created a founders trust. most of the land is still in the trust, and we have to unlock the potential of that land. some of it has timber potential, minimal potential, and some of it is just great land. that land needs to be used for its original intended purpose. moderator: we want to move on to alaska's addiction crisis. because of overdoses spiked to an all-time high in alaska last

year despite a national declining trend. what would you support at the federal level to lower these rates in alaska? you have one minute. congresswoman peltola? rep. peltola: again, i think that making available wellness programs is a huge piece of this. i think with the terrible influx of fentanyl through our southern border and into every community in alaska, fentanyl has impacted every family one way or another in alaska, and we need to make sure we have protections at the border to prohibit that fentanyl from coming across the border, and i think that we need to arm people with the antidote to fentanyl overdoses and heroin overdoses. i think this is an important piece to it, but i really am back on making sure that we are

teaching our young people positive ways of dealing with stress, positive ways of soothing stressful situations and not resorting to substance abuse. moderator: our next two questions will be specific -- so sorry, pardon me. mr. begich: all right, so this is an important issue to me. the fentanyl crisis in alaska has taken far too many lives. there is a friend of mine who is a mom who lost her son to a fentanyl overdose, and it is a heartbreaking story. and there are so many stories like that across our state and our nation. the challenges that we do not have a secure southern border. so many of these drugs, and it is not just fentanyl. so many of these drugs are coming across our southern border impacting people's lives, destroying people's families, they are killing youth. we have got to have a secure

border. in congress should you elect to me my commitment to you is to always support americans first. prioritize the people of our nation first. make sure our borders are secure and do everything we can to stop these substances from entering our homes. moderator: i went to follow-up on that one as well again. in alaska specifically we are hearing reports that cartels and drug dealers specifically come to alaska because the prices are so much higher here, and they can make so much more money, so how do you address that federally? mr. begich. mr. begich: these drugs initially come across the border, and they will often enter the mail system, the united states postal service. they will be sent up through drug mules. we have to do more to interdict to those drugs in the post

office and at the airports. when you enter a number of other countries around the world they use drug dogs heavily. we need to make sure we are investing in those programs to stop those drugs from entering our state. moderator: congressman peltola, you have 30 seconds. rep. peltola: i think a huge piece of this is examining packages at the post office as well as ups and fedex. i toured the fedex facility and they have a robust process where they are examining suspicious packages. a lot of alaskan communities are specifically targeted because they can make more money. i think that the state of alaska drug prevention programs are critical. moderator: thank you. now our next two questions will be specific to each candidate with a one minute answer. your opponent will have an opportunity for a 32nd response. mr. begich, a bill in congress

that would have strength and border security died in congress the session. it had bipartisan support and approval from border patrol officials. would you have voted yes or no on this bill and why? mr. begich: i would not have voted for that specific bill. there were several people of legislation that republicans on the outside offered up including the secure border act of 2023. at the end of the day we have to make sure these bills are not just addressing one part of the problem. that particular bill would have dramatically increased the number of border agents and turn them into immigration officials. we are continuing to bring these people in from foreign nations. upwards of 20 million people are in our nation illegally right now. these people are receiving free health care, free medical

attention, free housing, free transportation, free education, and it is not free. we are paying for it. at the end of the day and a bill that will not fix that part of the problem is not an actual solution. it exacerbates the problem. moderator: congressman peltola, 30 seconds for a response. rep. peltola: i have voted for several bills that called for tougher enforcement. i voted yes on condemning the president for his handling of the border, but this issue has been mishandled by both parties. it is now being used as a political football. it should not be used as a football especially when we have things like fentanyl coming across the border. we have got to have new emergency authorities to shut down our border if it becomes overwhelmed that we have got to have a faster system for asylum-seekers. moderator: congressman peltola, in april to join the rest of the alaska delegation supporting a

goldmine. what is your position on the mine change? rep. peltola: it is important when we are looking at projects around the state to listen carefully to the regional corporations that are involved in those projects and can benefit from them. the corporation chose the land near the site because of its minimal potential. i think that it is as your representative in alaska for alaska in d.c. i need to make sure i am upholding federal laws. the alaska native claims settlement act was a promise to alaskans that the land they selected they could develop. 50 years later we have now turned her back on that promise and have put everything in front of regional corporations to prohibit them from resource development and the profitability of their own land. i think it is important that we

listen to the stakeholders in the region and alaska native corporations. moderator: mr. begich, 30 seconds. mr. begich: i am a full supporter of mining, responsible mineral development. i tell people all the time, if you care about the earth, you would develop the resources of this earth where it is done most responsibly, and it is done most responsibly in alaska. you should be consistently supportive of minimal development in our state. i can tell you if i get elected i will not flip-flop on this issue. i will always be supporting alaska's right to produce. moderator: we have a couple more candidates specific questions. these will be asked without an opponent response. mr. begich, during the recent vice presidential debate republican jd vance declined to say whether joe biden was the winner of the 2020 election.

do you believe president joe biden legitimately won the election? mr. begich: i believe joe biden won the election because he is the president today, but we have to look at is all of the thing that was required in order for them to do that. we saw a great deal of censorship on facebook and google, social media at suppressing free speech. it these are the things that happened by the scenes in order for joe biden to do what he did. we sought last-minute changes under the guise of going emergency and how elections were administered in a number of swing states. i think it is worth looking at that. it is acceptable and reasonable for any american to question is this reasonable? is this what we expect in a free and fair election? and i think the clear answer is no. i think we need to make sure that our elections are open, free, fair, and that information is allowed to transmit between

one person and another in our country. moderator: are you saying the election was fair and honest election, that he was a legitimately elected president or not? mr. begich: as i stated, key was elected president. the techniques that were used to get him elected were not legitimate. suppressing free speech in our country is not a legitimate mechanism to get elected. when you saw big tech cooperate to eliminate the ability for conservatives to communicate, that is not legitimate, but he won the election. he is the president, and he will not be president here in just a few months. moderator: congressman peltola, data from pro-public art shows you voted against your party. why aren't you openly supporting your party's nominee for president? rep. peltola: i think it is

important that alaskans who represent all alaska are not overly partisan. i do not see the world through a partisan lens. i see the world as an alaskan, and i am constantly thinking about what is best for alaska? what is best for the alaskan people? if it is our economy, regarding guns, i am happy to vote against my party. i think that endorsing either of the presidential candidates is -- you know, i think a lot of people would say what would you endorse -- if you plan on working with either of them whoever is elected, why would you use your time focused on a race you really do not have any control over? talk about running your own race. i am running mayoral race and i have a full plate running our

own country -- state. moderator: we will voting for kamala harris? rep. peltola: it is a secret ballot. both of our candidates have flaws. much of the concern will be around who are they choosing as their senior advisors. i think both candidates are flawed, and i do not know why i would use a bit to get my gas on a race i do not have any control over. moderator: thank you for your responses. we need to take a short break, but before we do would like to remind you again we want to hear what issues matter most to you? go to alaskapublic.org to fill out a survey. moderator: after a shortmoderatr

2024 debate for the statehouse he. what questions do you two have for each other? moderator: candidates will have no more than 15 seconds to ask their questions followed by a one minute response and rebuttal. representative peltola, you may ask the first question now. rep. peltola: ok, nick begich, you are one of eight candidates that the freedom caucus has invested in. do you think that alaskans want someone who will spend their time in d.c. engaged in twitter fights putting out speaker after speaker? mr. begich: i am not an obstructionist. we need to get work done to be serious about the work happening in d.c. the work that has been happening in d.c. is not good. it has resulted in inflation, made it harder for people to stay in alaska.

we see 67 executive orders issued by the biden-harris team targeting alaska specifically. it is making it harder and harder for alaskans to make a living, harder and harder for alaskans to stay here. i do not think we need to be supporting an agenda that is obstructionist. we need to make sure government is staying in its lane, doing what it is supposed to do constitutionally, balancing budgets, protecting the american people and putting the needs of the american people first. when it is not doing that it is incumbent for people to stand up who have been elected to represent americans across the country and say this is not working. moderator: would you like 30 seconds to rebut? rep. peltola: i would not categorize the freedom caucus is working to stabilize government or keep it funded. every time we turn around we are on the precipice of a government

shutdown which affects every alaskan. we are right now in a placeholder on our continuing resolution that it will quickly be revisited again in november because of the freedom caucus. there are bent two motions to vacate the speaker, which puts us at a deadlock. moderator: mr. begich, you may now ask your question. mr. begich: the average salary for an alaskan is $36,000 a year. can you explain to alaskans what is cryptocurrency and how does it work? rep. peltola: well, i know that it starts with a block chain. i am not an expert on crypto, but i do believe in innovation. i believe in creating ways for people to buy and sell goods in different ways and not have to rely on using the same check

over and over within a community, do not have to rely on dollar bills, writing checks, or exorbitant portions when you were doing transfers using venom will -- venmo and other apps. one of the most exciting things we are seeing in our country's innovation around this kind of currency, and i went to see and learn more about it, but i went to see where this goes. like you said, you supported -- support it. i think it is good to embrace intimation -- innovation. mr. begich: i think it is great to embrace innovation. i just find it amazing someone can receive $2 million in a campaign that someone knows very little about. this is how people buy votes in congress. they find a candidate they know they can rely on for their

specific pieces of legislation, whether they know anything about it or not. moderator: next of question from the alaska black caucus. >> hi, i am celeste, president and ceo of the alaska black caucus. my question is what specific initiative do you propose to address economic disparities and create opportunities for underrepresented communities? moderator: congresswoman peltola , you have 30 seconds. what specific initiatives do you propose to address economic disparities and create opportunities for underrepresented communities? rep. peltola: specific opportunities? the think that i am working on and interested in is not specific small groups of

people. i went to work for all of alaskans. this job is to represent every alaskan in the state, and the best way to do that is look good our collective challenges. things like high cost of heating, energy, groceries. extremely high cost of air travel. we need to be embracing everything we can, whether it is promoting natural resource development to up make sure we have good, livable wage jobs and providing energy in a clean and well-regulated way, in a humane way to our state residents, and if we can export that to the rest of the world. i think it is important that we are intentional about making sure that everybody benefits for the programs we work on. moderator: mr. begich? mr. begich: i think it is so important that everyone have a seat at the table, no matter

what community you are part of, no matter what ethnic group, no matter what religion. it is important. america's promise is a dream that enough people can make it here with hard work and right living. we have to do more to ensure that people have access to high-quality education, particularly here in alaska. we need to make sure our university system is producing enough graduates in the right field to support or industries here so we do not have to look outside of alaska. we can do that inside alaska. i think it is also important we take those opportunities and cascade them down through k-12. there is so much disparity in our education system in the state of alaska. we need to make sure every kid no matter where they are has the same opportunities for great education. moderator: to follow up on that one, and her question she did ask what specific initiatives do

you propose? i would like you have 30 seconds. mr. begich: we need to make sure that the department of education is removing so many of the restrictions on the funding they are providing to the state. they are being too prescriptive in alaska. we have diverse communities, and when the federal government hands down standard so-called to alaska, they are taking up valuable classroom time, removing the creativity of an educator to adapt the curriculum, and we need to remove those roadblocks to a education in alaska. moderator: congresswoman peltola? rep. peltola: i focused so much of my time in making sure that programs are available to every alaskan regardless of ethnicity or interest group. specific initiatives, i think education helps level the playing field. i also think it is important to

have a diverse group of leaders to lead by example and showed the gorgeous mosaic that alaska has to offer. moderator: we went to return to alaska's economy. mr. begich, alaska's delegation is against the proposed merger between kroger and albertson. do you support this merger? why or why not? mr. begich: i think it is really important when we look at blocking mergers or supporting mergers, we have to look at the competitive environment. here in alaska we need to make sure the competitive environment remains. it helps keep cost down for everyone in the state. when you lose that competition, when you lose that ability for people to compete on price and service, you end up driving the cost up. i think need to make sure any merger that goes through between those two important grocery

chains it competition in our state. as proposed under the merger some of the stores would be sold to another operator. that would do some things to preserve competition, but there is more than we see get the retail level. there are things happening back in the supply chain. back consolidation can end up costing consumers more. i need to take a closer look at it to ensure competition remains in place. moderator: to follow up on that one, do you supported? -- support it? mr. begich: i support the ability for firms to emerge, but we have to protect the consumer as well. i think it is really important that an environment for competition remains throughout the entire grocery supply chain. one of the things we have to recognize is amazon as dramatically disrupted this entire industry, so a number of

the goods you would purchase at a store you are now buying online. moderator: congresswoman peltola, you oppose this merger? what requirements would there need to be to protect consumers from higher prices? rep. peltola: this merger not only threatens alaska, but it threatens the balance across the nation. i have been the leader on halting the albertson-kroger merger. we work with the ftc, and the ftc talked about the new model they were exposed to in hearing from stakeholders, and i am proud of the work that i've done on making sure alaskans can talk about this merger and the negative impacts we have seen from another merger. a number of local grocery stores closed really impacting neighborhoods, communities, and

we need to know how many stores would possibly be divested not under the merger. we need to know where those stores are and what the game plan is for that community. need to make sure people have bargaining rights if this merger goes forward. moderator: before we continue with our questions, we would like to remind you again that we want to hear which issues are most important to you. scan the qr code on your screen or go to alaskapublic.org. next we turn to public safety. the need for policing in rural alaska is a long-standing problem. in 2019 then attorney general william barr declared the lack an emergency. world citizens do not have adequate protection from lawlessness.

what would you propose to fix this chronic problem? rep. peltola: i served on the budget subcommittee for corrections and public safety when i served in juneau in the legislature. this is a pressing issue for people across alaska, and i think it is critically important that when the federal government has an overture of $1 million that the $1 million is not taken out on the backend by the state. if the funding needs to go through the bureau of indian affairs were some other agency to make sure we are not getting shortchanged and seeing no progress whatsoever, those are the strategies that we need to employ. i think we need federal money and federal help with our public safety issues. we have over 200 communities, and just a handful of them have any public safety whatsoever,

and we have seen a diminishment in the workforce that we have, whether it is municipal police officers, tribal or state. mr. begich: i think there are a number of challenges with public safety in rural alaska. that is because it is difficult to scale that support effort at a smaller level. i think it is important that we make sure that criminals are locked up. if you go out to court view and you and look to see some of the rap sheet's, you will see some people have been charged with crimes 30, 40, 100 times. these people need to be put in jail and stake in jail. if you want to clean up the streets you have to remove the criminals and start the rehabilitation process. we also need to make sure we are pressing federal charges.

we need these people to be put into federal prison, and that is something the federal government needs to do. those are positions that i would work harder to find. moderator: let's talk about funding for projects like roads and bridges. should alaska's delegation should -- get as much funding as you can? mr. begich: this is a really important question, and it is important because we are both alaskans and americans, so it is really important that we are considering both. we are a young state. we need to invest in infrastructure and make sure that infrastructure is real infrastructure. i am talking about new roads, bridges, ports, harbors, and yes, broadband, but that broadband is to evolve satellites as well. so many of these communities reliant on broad event solutions

have skipped and gone straight to satellite. when we invest we invest with hard, real and true infrastructure, that we are not mislabeling bills to get other priorities past in congress. i am a full supporter of investing in infrastructure, but i believe if we will make an infrastructure investment make sure that it is real infrastructure. moderator: representative peltola? rep. peltola: i wholeheartedly believe in investing in infrastructure. all of our great leaders in alaska worked on this and made significant headway. we live in a huge state. we are the size of a country, of a medium-sized country, and a lot of the infrastructure that has been handed over to municipalities from the state needs upgrades. with the inclement weather we have here, with the challenges with just time.

we have to make sure our boat harbors are being maintained, our bridges, our roads. we have these generational bills passed before my time in congress, but i have made sure are staying competitive. i hired a woman in my office named aurora who is helping communities in different agencies to look through these generational bills to find ways that alaska can capitalize on those investments. moderator: next up our final video question of the evening from aarp alaska. after the video, mr. begich, you will have 30 seconds to respond. >> if washington does not take action social security could be cut by 20% or more. do you see a path in congress to a bipartisan solution to protect social security? mr. begich: absolutely, i am a wanted to percent full supporter of social security despite what you may have seen on ads and tv,

i wanted to percent -- i wanted to percent support meeting our commitments. i have said the federal government as taken the social security trust fund, and they have suspended on current operating expenditures. it is being reappropriated for deficit spending. that is wrong and we have to do more to protect it. moderator: representative peltola. rep. peltola: i wholeheartedly support social security. every elder i know it relies on social security, and i do not see that need to away anytime soon in the state of alaska and across our country. this is a promise that we made and something we can never go back on. i see opportunities to work in a bipartisan way to fix this as long as it is not being used as a political football in campaigns. this is one of the most sacred promises we have made and i will

do everything i can to uphold it. moderator: we had two questions tonight for our poll. rate your priorities as a voter, while the second has asked have you already made up your mind? economy as their top priority followed by reproductive rights and public safety. moderator: let's look at the decisions about voting. there were 201 people who said, yes, they will vote. 32 said no and one person does not plan to vote at all. it is time for our closing statements, and we did drop from the hat, so congresswoman peltola, you have one minute for your closing statement.

rep. peltola: i have been in this job for two years now, and it has been the honor of my life did i believe firmly in deliverables, and that is what i achieve. alaska in the last two years because of the role i have played within the delegation to closely with both of our senators, we saw rail get approved for a second time. we saw a president go back on his campaign promise and ignore senior advisors. because i was able to make compelling and convincing arguments for the development of this project, we curtailed russian seafood imports, an issue that our senator has worked on for 10 years. i was able to get the president to issue an executive order to curtail that. we have gotten $2.56 million for the real grid. we are working on helping the

albertsons-kroger merger. moderator: thank you. mr. begich, your closing statement. mr. begich: we have a nation to save. we have a country to safe, and at the end of the day there are two groups in d.c. who have different divisions. you have the hard left that controlled the agenda for the democratic party. they have issued 67 orders targeting alaska. joe biden, kamala harris, and their allies in congress have it out for a state. that is the truth. and the reality is if we want to open alaska we have got to do a better job at advocating for our state. i was recently on the radio this week with majority leader steve scalise. is commitment is in the first 100 days of the next congress that alaska's needs are prioritized in the budget reconciliation act and that we

push back against joe biden's agenda. i believe in the potential of alaska. moderator: and that concludes our u.s. house debate or the state 2024. i would like to thank our candidates for joining us. moderator: election day is november 5, and we encourage every alaskan to vote and to make your voices heard. for alaska public

kari lake. live coverage on c-span. >> we are going to start with the border this evening. we have separated this topic into two categories -- border

security and immigration reform. mr. gallego, you one of the earliest critics of the border wall. has your perspective changed on that? how much of a role does a border wall need to play? rep. gallego: the border wall is important to the security package. it has to be coupled with technology and manpower. this is why it was important the bill passed because it had a lot of those elements. i have voted for border walls in the past. with the proper manpower and staffing, it does work. what does not work is a border wall without the manpower and laws you need to implement because it does not end up being of use. it just costs us money. this is why we focused on the border security bill. make sure we brought something

the border patrol wanted. thousands of border patrol agent's, thousands of ice agents. this is stuff i heard from our border patrol union. i heard from the mayor's i have visited, county officials. they needed this and wanted this. that is why i was very sad that kari lake was against the bill. so lee standing, she was still against it. not because there was a better option but she needs to be a border problem. that solution would have brought a lot of the problems we have under control. from day 1, i have worked in a bipartisan manner. i worked with a republican from southern arizona to get veterans

to join border patrol. even recently i signed onto a bill to get more federal law-enforcement and make it easier for them to join border patrol, something that has been difficult. >> ms. lake, two minutes. i will give you a full two minutes to talk about the border wall and can it withhold without adding extra security and billions on technology? ms. lake: i just jotted'down rubens exact quote. we are getting the extreme makeover version of ruben. he has voted against border security every step of the way. i covered the state for 27 years and we watched as secure politicians said they would give

us border security and they never did until president trump came along and secure the border but he had to do it with one hand tied behind his back because people like my opponent saw him every step of the way. the border wall keeps us safe. we have seen areas where the border wall is there and where there are gaps, people are pouring through. ruben gallego has supported kamala harris, the border czar, and joe biden's open border policy which has led to 400,000 convicted criminals coming in and they have done nothing to secure the border. the only piece of legislation mr. gallego put forth was about removing the wor -- words "i llegal." he is more worried about semantics. we are worried about a potential

terrorist attack. we want to go for a jog in the morning, like laken riley did, and not worry about being raped for murdered. i want to finish the border wall. on day 1 my first piece of legislation would be to fully expedite the completion of the border wall. we paid for the materials to do that but ruben gallego and kamala harris have sold back $325 million of border material for pennies on the dollar. they gave it away. >> in addition to finishing the wall, do you add security and technology and do you spend on that as well? ms. lake: absolutely. i do not think we can do enough to secure our border. everything -- because of this man's policies.

100% open border. he sided with the cartels every step of the way and against the american people. >> mr. gallego, do you support open borders? rep. gallego: absolutely not. the country does not -- i have been very proud of making sure that in my time in congress that i have voted and brought thousand of border patrol agent's to arizona. i have voted and funded hundreds of miles of border walls, where needed. this is why i am supportive of the border enforcement bill, the compromise bill supported by border patrol. kari lake cannot explain why she was against the bill. this is why we have more support from border mayors htan she does -- than she does.

now is supporting us because he knows we are not just talk. we are here to bring the resources to control the border and not just use it as a talking point, which is what kari lake does. ms. lake: he voted against president trump's national emergency at the border. he was talking to people donating money to his campaign and said he is not an expert on the border. we need someone who understands the threat and i do and president trump does. we will get busy undoing the damage caused by kamala harris, joe biden and ruben gallego has been with them 100% of the time. can you imagine voting with the kamala harris and joe biden 100% of the time, especially with the border? we have 20 million people pouring in, they are taking jobs and housing. this is why nobody can afford housing?

we have to compete with people coming in illegally. i am 100% for legal immigration. my mother-in-law came here legally. all of the incredible immigrants in this country who came here legally are horrified by the votes my opponent has taken and what come has done. that piece of legislation, thank you for reminding me, i am not for it. it would codify into law 5000 people every day coming in illegally. 5000 people every day would be pouring across our border illegally. nothing to stop child sex trafficking. 350,000. they have lost track of them. >> on that topic, are there any elements of the bipartisan border bill you would have supported? ms. lake: it was not done

properly. . here is what happens in washington, d.c. -- guys meet in back rooms and say let's put a border deal together. they call it something and it is usually the opposite. and then they put a bunch of stuff other in it. the piece of legislation i had a real problem with was the attached it to $100 billion of arizona's money going overseas to kill people. when they could not get it passed because there was no bipartisan support. three people supporting it, the senators were not bipartisan behind it. the house was not supporting it, either. what they did is they separated it out and ruben gallego voted to send another $60 billion to ukraine.

he was waving a ukrainian flag. can you ever imagine standing on the floor of congress and waving the flag of another country? that is what this gentleman did. he sold us out to ukraine. he spent $260 billion, he voted every penny of that but would not help president trump with the border wall. even if president trump sent to the democrats that i want to make a deal when it comes to daca, let's make them citizens in exchange for helping me come up with money to build the border wall. ruben gallego and the democrats said no. they are using these daca recipients as political pawns. i find that disgusting. >> specifically about the dreamers -- rep. gallego: i was negotiating this with the chief of staff of

then president trump. we did agree to give the border wall for dreamers and then he came back and said we want to bring down more legal migration, take out green cards. ms. lake: that is not true. rep. gallego: i was in the room. >> i promise you a rebuttal. rep. gallego: this is something she has been avoiding. why don't we just give dreamers status? kari lake has dodged what would happen with dreamers. she will not answer if she will deport the dreamers. i do nothing dreamers should be deported. let's talk about this -- the bill was separated. once from pressure from politicians like kari lake who just want a border problem, a lot of republicans walked away from a border compromise bill that had a lot of republican cosponsors.

they made a separate bill only on the border and kari lake again voted no. this is why she does not have support of so many border mayors. they understand we take this serious. it is not just campaign rhetoric. ms. lake: we just learned this week that 435,000 people have come across. we knew they had criminal records. 60,000 of them were convicted rapists and murderers. this piece of legislation was a disaster. i have a solution called hr and it will2 constructing the border wall. dealing with people who poured in during the 20 million people who have come in unvented into our country. we must deal with them to see her homeland. we must send them back to their

homeland. i'm talking about the people who came in unvented the last 3.5 years. i'm not talking about the dreamers. do you want to keep them here? do you support the people who have invaded our country in the last 3.5 years? do you want to deport any of them? rep. gallego: yes, we should have a proper deportation proceeding. we should not support dreamers. ms. lake: all 20 million of them? rep. gallego: let's be clear. ms. lake: let's talk about them. rep. gallego: you have not made clear -- ms. lake: you had a chance to make a deal. rep. gallego: she said she will deport people. will you do for dreamers? ms. lake: president trump wanted to make a deal when it comes to dreamers, you said no. the radical democrats, like my opponent, would rather use people as political pawns. i want to support --

we watched as hundreds of thousands of people a year are taken from us because of drug poisoning. you have empowered the cartel. >> i would like to ask, through august of this fiscal year, customs and border patrol reported more than 2 million people caught crossing a legally , five hundred thousand pounds of drugs seized at ports of entry, what is the bigger threat to you? the flow of migrants or drugs? ms. lake: they are both terrible. it is a war against america. we have an invasion coming in. they look like soldiers coming in across our border. we have the cartels empowered by ruben gallego, trafficking drugs into our state. i have met so many parents and loved ones on the campaign trail who come up to me, they will

wait until the end of the event. they come up to me at the end of an event and they say i lost my son, key was 16. he took half of what he thought was a xanax pill. a 20-year-old daughter, young mother. we are losing an entire generation of young people. you should know better, ruben. you have admitted you have a loved one who was a convicted drug traffickers, who has traffic drugs into our country. >> admitted to respond. ms. lake: i feel for you. you got emotional talking about that. for you to contribute to vote to empower cartels to bring in fentanyl into our country, you talked about it -- >> mr. gallego, one minute. ms. lake: he talked about a family member trafficking drugs.

what they are doing to families, you are making that be their reality. moms and dads are losing people because of drugs. they have empowered the cartels. rep. gallego: i have taken this seriously. i was in support of more technology to the border that would have checked the scanners. that was in the bill that kari lake stood up and said do not pass it. it would have brought a political solution to an end. she needs this talking point. as a member of the armed services committee, i introduced a bill called the buck stops here that helps us track down the sources of money that go to fentanyl, all the way to china and mexico. this is why i have more support from elected officials and leaders in this country and this state than she does. border mayors that used a campaign with her are

campaigning with me because they do not think is serious about this. it seems like donald trump does not want to campaign with her anymore either. this is what we are seeing right now. a candidate who can only talk, does not produce. >> one of the impacts being felt by border towns we heard from in the questions submitted by voters is the hospitals in border towns are spending on medical care for migrants. food banks have been impacted. now locals are buried there are not enough resources left for them. how do you -- now locals are worried there are not enough resources for them. we are looking at for-profit and nonprofit organizations. rep. gallego: i have been working for the last two years to make sure we bring money to border communities. this is money, yuma county, santa cruz county.

ms. lake: the ngo's transporting. he wants to fund the ngo's. rep. gallego: these communities including the nonprofits that work with communities are essential to making sure the streets are not full of men just walking around. what they do with help from fema is we make sure these migrants are not affecting the small towns. they cannot take the impact. hospitals, law enforcement, they are all reimbursed. kari lake will say anything to gain power. she has said that we took money from fema, we took money from fema for a hurricane when we appropriated the money for the border communities. now she says we should cut that. she said we should cut that.

these mayors and say, because i want to earn points with my friends, i will cut your funds. she is lying right now that the money went to the fema came from that fund. it is going directly to them. it does not matter as long as she gets her talking points and she gets to lie and gets power. >> how do you rectify the financial impact for those border communities? ms. lake: hospitals having to close down, hospitals not being paid because people coming across illegally are getting services and they are not being paid. ruben's idea is to funnel billions of dollars into the ngo's taking part in transferring people into our country. go to the airport in arizona, take a red eye, it looks like a migrant encampment.

people are moving to all 50 states and ruben gallego has funded that. the real solution in arizona is not to have to pour billions of dollars to shut down the border, it is the border wall that he called the dumb, stupid border wall. we do not have to put millions of dollars into the ngo's. the real solution to help border communities so they are not taking a financial hit is to finally put the border wall up and get serious about border security. mr. gallego would rather put $260 billion of your hard earned dollars into ukraine. i want to protect you. that is why president trump has called me border kari lake. i love the victim. i will help him build the border wall and secure the border. we cannot afford work kamala harris and ruben gallego have

done. a match in voting for 100% of the time for an open border. the fentanyl falling into the hands of our young people. it is affecting our economy. when you bring 20 million people in, they will work for peanuts, especially under ruben gallego's plan to pay for their housing and give them at ebt card with thousands of dollars to pay for their food. they can work for a reduced wage. it brings your wages down and makes all of our families struggle even more. police are struggling because of more crime. how many of you know someone who is a victim of the crime from these chilean gangs who are terrorizing people? >> 30 seconds. rep. gallego: this money has been requested by the communities. this money has been requested

and they asked us to work with these nonprofits to release the pressure they have. she would literally leave these towns abandoned. why have you not visited them? you have been some mar-a-lago more than you have been to the border. if you actually talk to these towns, nonprofit, these mayors, they would tell you we need this or we will have chaos. she wants the talking point. arizona will get hurt. ms. lake: i have been to the border. >> we need to change topics. mr. gallego, let's switch topics to abortion. if you were in the senate, would you vote to either codify abortion in the u.s. constitution, or would you vote for a ban four find somewhere in the middle? do you think federal government should be involved at all? rep. gallego: i would codify

roe. it is important that my 15 -- the fact that we have women -- we have women that are traveling with their daughter who are victims of rape, out of state so they can get an abortion. a 10-year-old baby girl, victim of incest, had to leave her own state to get an abortion. the reason we need to codify it is because people like kari lake make this a dangerous situation. this was a person less than two years ago said 1864 territorial law, a law that said if you were an abortion provider it was a mandatory two-year sentence and it had no exceptions for she said it was a great law.

she said she was thrilled when roe was overturned, and then when she was disappointed to find out the 1864 law, the one that had no exceptions for rape or incest, was not going to get in force, she said i hope that sheriffs will do their jobs. can you imagine -- we have it on tape. these are your words on tape. can you imagine the sheriff enforcing abortion laws? this is who kari lake is. she has told us what you would do. she said it. she said she was thrilled when roe was overturned, and so do we want politicians like kari lake to be involved in these very difficult decisions when they should be left of the woman, the doctor, and the family? ms. lake: it should be left to the states. i agree with ruth bader ginsburg.

everybody knew it was unconstitutional, and arizona -- i will speak to the women of arizona. i am the only woman on this stage right now. i don't think i'm standing next to a woman, so we understand how difficult these choices might be. we have the choice has arizonans to decide what our abortion law will be, and we will decide in november. ruben gallego wants to take the choice away from us. he wants to bring it back to the federal government and take away our right and arizona. i want us to have that choice, and whatever the law ends up being i will respect. i come from a large family. i am the youngest of nine, and we have a girls. i am a daughter myself, and i want to make sure that we have the choice to decide what our abortion law is in arizona. we are running for federal office. this is not going to be decided in the senate, this is not, and

i will never pass a federal abortion ban nor will i approve the use of federal tax dollars for abortion. here is what i will do, because i am a mother and i care deeply about women. more and more people are choosing to have an abortion because they cannot afford to live, let alone take care of the baby. i do not want anyone to make that choice because of the votes ruben gallego has made to collapse the economy. i went to pass profamily legislation. i want to make sure you vf -- uvf is protected. i have many friends who have had children and experienced the joy of motherhood because of uvf. ruben gallego does not really care about women's rights. when it comes to athletes he

would like them to compete against men. moderator: you said you would not appropriate -- ms. lake: we have a 15 week abortion law passed by democrats and republicans signed into law, so we do not have an abortion ban, but i will not pass a federal abortion event in the united states senate. ruben gallego wants to take the choice away from us. i am a stand that he knows the difference between a woman and a man, because i thought there were 147 different genders. i do care about women's rights. i come from a family of women, many nieces and nephews, and i care about the right to exist and live. people are pouring across the border, dangerous people taking

away the lives of women. i care about the ability for our daughters to be able to participate in athletics. he does not want that and he does not care about your first amendment right to the women who disagree with them politically. women care about a lot of different issues. i know you spent $40 million on attack ads regarding abortion. think about how many lives could have been saved with $40 million and think about what we could have done to up make our country a better place. moderator: i would give you a minute to respond and i want you to clarify because you said you would vote to uphold roe on a federal level. that means states can only intervene in the third trimester. rep. gallego: that is correct. we would go back to the protections we had for 50 years. kari lake misspoke when she said the 15 week ban is good and not a ban.

there is also within that current law no exceptions for incest and rape, so we are going back to what she was originally saying not too long ago when she said this very restrictive log that had no exceptions for rape or incest, that would have jailed providers was a great law. someone that was willing to look at a mother and say i know your daughter was raped, but she does not have a right to an abortion. she was willing to say that just two years ago, and now we are going to trust her? this is the same person that is still lying about winning the 2022 election. she felt the basic test of honesty. moderator: i am going to ask you specifically -- 30 seconds. ms. lake: he acts like he cares about us. look at his character and his background. he has been harassing women and

being disparaging toward women from the very beginning. when he worked at city hall he had a complaint about a hostile work environment. he went over to the legislature, there was a sexual harassment filed against him. people go crying out of his office. this is a man putting on an extreme makeover act. moderator: we want to get some specifics for voters, because you mentioned you had a plant to support cad services, so things like state foster and adoptive services, mental health services for women in postpartum care. what is your plan to support those services? ms. lake: that gets a mention so infrequently in this discussion. we have talked about abortion, but we have not talked about adoption, and there are so many families out there who would love to adopt a child. i just saw a statistic and it broke my heart.

60% of women to have an abortion would've chosen not to have one if they knew there was financial or emotional help, so we are offering a little bit of help to women and they will choose to have that baby. a lot of these that you mentioned are state programs, so that would be done at the state level. anything we can do in the federal government to assist in that. we need to bigger families. our birth rate is dropping to it insipidus level, actually dangerous, and we cannot just important -- import new population. i just believe deeply and how beautiful and wonderful families are coming from a big family myself. we did not have much, but we had love. moderator: thank you, and mr. gallego, one minute. would you try to work in something on the federal level

to provide better services for families who are trying to afford their children, and if any stricter state abortion bans are held. rep. gallego: we want to make sure we continue great work we give the child tax credit that brought child property done 60%, which by the way kari lake was against when the bill was on the floor. right now childcare is more expensive than sending your kid to asu, so these are the things we should be doing as often as we can to make everyday better. there were a lot of personal habits of were just around there, and we will not go through every line. ms. lake: i would be interested in you doing that. rep. gallego: the state representative center in email asking her to stop him up because what happened did not happen.

she is supporting us and supporting us in this campaign. whenever she does not have an answer, she goes for a personal attack. she will ban abortion. she was willing to taliban your daughter cannot have an abortion even if she was raped. moderator: we will move on to the economy. mrs. lake, i went to rescue a specific question. a lot of people in the state of arizona regardless of the stock market going up or unemployment being low, they are struggling right now. what does a living wage look like to you, and how as a senator would you help people in arizona get to a point where they could afford housing? ms. lake: i am so glad you were asking these questions, because this is the number one issue for arizonans. people are struggling. i was talking to a woman in the west valley, and she talked about how she volunteers and she has volunteered for the goods at

the food bank, giving food and volunteering her time. she said for the first time in my life i have had to go to the food bank and ask for my health, because i do not have enough money to get through the end of the week. it starts with bringing down the cost of everything. we have been affected most by inflation. housing prices are on the rise. they have gone up 35%. when i first moved here a three bedroom house for idiot thousand dollars. -- warned ruben gallego and the democrats do not send this piece of legislation into law, or it will send inflation skyrocketing up. that is exactly what they did. they did not heed the warning.

the price of eggs up over 100%. the average monthly mortgage payment has gone up 105% in arizona, and we have three cities that actually have the highest jump in rent payments every single month, and that is tucson, mesa, in phoenix. one of the things i want to do is secure the border. when you have 20 million people competing for goods answer is it is a basic supply and demand, but we also have to work to bring down the cost of everything and to make sure that we are not printing money and bringing inflation. there was one entity that can create inflation. that is the government. they have pushed for more spending, and that means more printing of money, and that is why your dollar is only worth $.75 today. it was worth one dollar under president trump. rep. gallego: first of all the minimum wage should be $15 and pegged to inflation so it keeps moving up.

you fight inflation by looking at how you can bring down costs. we have a big opportunity to stop the merger of grocery stores in arizona. by allowing kroger and upwards to merge double of 75% of all grocery stores control. that will raise prices, and we already see grocery stores gouging consumers. kari lake went on record and said she did not think there were any gouging of consumers even though we had these corporations under oath saying they did do it. we pass legislation that mandates our government negotiates the price of prescription drugs. next year's seniors will have their prescription drugs cap at a total of $2000. and we have to make sure we fight these big corporations taking up 1/3 of all homes recently. now she would give them a tax cut next year. moderator: trump tax cuts, would

you vote to extend them? ms. lake: you are about to see the extreme makeover version of ruben. we are not only going to be extend the trump tax cuts. we will make sure we are not making anyone who is a senior citizen pay taxes on your social security check, no more taxes on tips and overtime. we have got to stop printing money. that is with the democrats have done, and we will start cutting back on wasteful spending and government. moderator: i give you 30 seconds. rep. gallego: we need to keep the middle class tax cuts. the tax cuts to corporations do not need to go up. she wants to give them a bigger tax cut. we also need to bring in a child tax credit as part of that trump tax cut, but giving more tax

cuts to those not paying their fair share and press gouging -- price gouging arizonans is unfair. moderator: you mentioned it specifically, social security. how do you maintain it, because arizona as one of the highest populations of seniors. how do you maintain social security without privatizing it? ms. lake: people on social security, you have paid into that. that is an insurance benefit, and we are not touching that. ruben gallego, volaris and the democrats were decimated. they want to make it that the age you have to be to qualify to get your social security, they want to raise that and also take medicare. they promised they would not bring medicare and touch it, and they have. he wants medicare for all, which really means medicaid for all. i have to mention the description drug prices.

his vote in the inflation reduction act actually caused medications to go up. 57% increase in price. moderator: thank you. mr. gallego, i will give you one moment to respond to that. rep. gallego: this has been fact checked. we did not support raising social security. we have increased the solvency of medicare by negotiating for drugs. the first time pharma has to negotiate for the cost of drugstore seniors. the fact that she wants to keep that, i do not know where to go with that. social security has to be saved. i have been working since 14. the money that i saved is the money that i earned. my mom is about to join the community too. she is about to be retired. there are so many arizonans that rely on it i'm up at the way that you do that is to be realistic. we need to raise that cap when it comes to social security.

people that make $400,000 a year will have the caps race, and that will increase the solvency and payout of social security 100% all the way to 2016 -- 2060. this has been checked by economists. ms. lake: he has got a democrat president. i do not know who is running the country right now. your first day on the job was 10 years ago. rep. gallego: we have a bill that does exactly that, and we have republicans stopping the bill. this is the difference between me and kari lake. i actually try to work on things. she just as talking points. ms. lake: he has voted with kamala harris and joe biden. he has voted with joe biden and kamala harris 100% of the time.

he was a leader of the progressive caucus. that is all the ideas where we scratch her head come from. moderator: we are almost running out of time. two hottest summers in recorded history. whether it is human because were cyclical, there was a climate difference going on in arizona. what are some ideas you have to make sure we have enough energy and water in the state if we get hotter? ms. lake: i would not do with the democrats did, we just take a great energy policy president trump had for the state and decimated on day one. we need to bring back and start building the keystone xl pipeline and continue to drill, baby, drill. i went to look at all sources of energy. any went to full energy that is an expensive and reliable. the price of electricity is gone up some 30%. i was reading an article the

other day of a woman who is a retiree quiz to keep her house it 83. she keeps the shades closed because you cannot afford to call her house. unfortunately with the move the democrats did right when they got into office caused a spike in energy prices. only now are they realizing they are in trouble, but the democrats want us to be reliant on foreign energy. foreign energy with the middle east and venezuela. they did not want us to have our own energy. everything should be on the table to use. cheap and reliable. moderator: mr. gallego, we will give you two minutes to respond. rep. gallego: we first have to accept that climate change is happening. we prepare by having a resilient grid. we need to bring in more energy, and that will have to be nuclear.

we can continue the growth that we have in arizona the manufacturing and residential to make sure we can beat that. she did not bring up water. we need to make sure we are dealing with the drought caused by climate change, so that means we need to make sure we have more water reclamation projects. we will have to cover our canals. in the 2026 negotiations coming up we will have to cut acreage of water. it is dangerous for farmers that will be shut off from that. she is in denial about climate change. she is in denial about the 2022 election. you have one minute. will you finally tell the people of arizona did you win or lose that election? moderator: i will give you 30 seconds. we are running out of time. ms. lake: let's talk about water. we have had 10 years in congress

and he has done. i have lived here for 30 years and listen to politicians talk about our water crisis. i am not talking about fighting over a drop of water. we cannot conserve our way out of this crisis. we will give the short end of the stick to our farm community and are renters and we will have a food crisis. i went to go to washington d.c. at work on true solutions. piping in freshwater, dissemination, and once and for all bringing in new sources of water to the west. we do not want to be scrounging over water. we went to have plentiful water sources. i am sick of watching politicians do nothing. moderator: we don't want to get to this last topic as well, you have both a major stance on previous elections clear, but we went to note public perception is at least in arizona at that something seems to go wrong every time, so what specifically

can be supported in the senate to restore faith and confidence regardless of who wins or loses in elections? ms. lake: we have had a across the country since 2000. when you're at the democrats are mad, the other the republicans are. the people of arizona have been burned. they are tired of hearing about hick ups and loopholes and problems that happen on election day. we went to make sure our legal vote counts. my opponent wants illegals to vote. i want every legal vote to count. i do not care if you are the most liberal democrat or conservative republican. let's get back to something closer we used to have, election day, paper ballots, and we know the results right there on the night of the election. we cannot have people pouring

across our country illegally voting. he wants to give them all is silent, and we have got to stop this nonsense. rep. gallego: this is kari lake when she does not have answers. i am not for illegals voting. this person has [indiscernible] she has caused harm to arizona and have made us a laughingstock. she has 14 lawsuits. she is currently suing to be reinstated as governor. she has caused stephen richard, a good republican comment to have to get private security because of all of her threats she caused upon him to the point where he stood for defamation and she admitted she lied. now she is just waiting for the judge to say how much he is going to have to pay him. and to bill gates, another republican. she just also said she went to get rid of vote by mail. what we are seeing here is kari

lake who still is not accepted that she lost the 2022 election. she will say and do anything to win, but arizona is the one losing now. moderator: how do you address public perception? rep. gallego: what you do is what you will see the secretary of state and others do. you show leadership. you go to the process, you work in a bipartisan manner to instill trust and have people learn about the process. not actually do what kari lake does. she explains it. she has a nonprofit to fight them steal, but we do not know which is been using the money for. she is still holding up the judge and terms of discovery so she can see how much io stephen richard for lying about elections. ms. lake: i have never liked to the people of arizona. unfortunately we are watching the great extreme makeover of

ruben gallego, but i have never lied -- about moderator: our time is up, so we went to get to get your closing statements. make sure you have that full minute. we will cut you what will be get to the end of the minute. mr. gallego, you have the first closing statement. rep. gallego: i am a very lucky man. i am lucky to be born in the best country in this world, and by all accounts i should not be here. my mom wished us alone, and it is a real belief in the american dream and a real want to succeed i got where i am, and my sisters. we have doctors, businesswomen in our small family. i want every arizona and -- arizonan to fulfill that. we are in a dangerous situation. we are at a crossroads. we have dangerous leaders like kari lake who will lie to you. she is trying to tickle your

vote and disrespecting you by saying that she still won the 2022 election. how can you trust someone like that willing to lie to you all the way to the end. arizona, we are better than this, and we are a great state that will become greater if we work together. moderator: kari lake, you have one minute. ms. lake: arizona, thank you for tuning in tonight and i am looking forward to being your next he was sinister -- next u.s. senator. no matter what color your skin, what neighborhood you are from, we went to make sure we have a strong economy. we want to fully fund our police. my opponent called to defund the police when he was marching in the blm riots and calling police officers and the bad guys. i went every police officer and their family to know i fully support you. we are going to need you to make

our streets safe again after all of the crime that is poured in with an open border. on day one we will get to secure the border, we will get the criminals who invaded our country out, and we will bring back that strong, thriving economy. if you have someone with kiddos watching, we are going to turn this country around and your american dream will become reality. moderator: and that is all the time that we have, and we thank you for watching. ♪

strategic and international studies, this is about 90 minutes. >> we have a lively bunch with us in the room and many guests joining us online. some new and old friends i am seeing in the audience. thank you. good morning or good afternoon, depending on your time zone. thank you all for joining us either in person or virtually to discuss the importance of applying a system approach to planning for u.s. government

climate resilient infrastructure investments around the world. i'm noah monger, the director of csis. the initiative is focused on applying lenses of economic security, risk management, and investment to issues of climate change adaptation and resilience . vulnerable communities and countries around the world are already grappling with the effects of climate change, including extreme weather and associated stresses. this is true across the planet and in our own backyard, and our thoughts go out to everyone in florida contending with hurricane milton, and others still breathing and recovering in response to hurricane helene. as efforts continue to rise in priority, making their way toward center stage and climate change discussion, a new resilience oriented economy is emerging, with the development of new investment asset classes,

innovative approaches to insurance, and technology-enabled crime and information systems. these are just a few examples. to this new program, csis aims to better improve future approaches and clinical dialogues at the heart of united states decision-making on global engagement. i would like to say a few words about today's agenda. the events will be comprised of several parts. first, we will hear from the treasury assistant secretary latortue. and we will hold a panel discussion that i will introduce and moderate. following that discussion and the q and a with all of you, there will be a short networking reception outside this room. i welcome all of you who are here in person. let's begin with the first part. as assistant secretary alexia leads international trade for the treasury department. she served as deputy ceo at the millennium challenge corporation. as a managing director at the european bank for reconstruction

and development. as a financial inclusion leader at the world bank. as the distance the -- deputy assistant secretary for developing policy, which is where i first had the opportunity to work closely with her a decade ago when she led the action agenda on financing. we are incredibly excited to welcome her back to discuss the importance and relevance of climate resilient infrastructure in international development. please join me in welcoming assistant secretary latortue to the stage. [applause] ms. latortue: as i spent much of last night trying to reach mike godmother, who lives in temple, florida, i was amended once again we live in a different world, and so we must -- we must do things differently. good morning.

i thanks, -- my thanks, noam, to you, and to csis, for creating the space to put this together to talk about a vital issue. hurricanes milton and helene are a vivid and painful reminder of the importance of resilient infrastructure right here in the united states. these hurricanes force us to confront the immense destruction that extreme weather can bring. increasing frequency and severity of climate-related events. in the terrible cost -- human, material, and financial -- when we are caught unprepared. with more than half a hundred lives lost in the aftermath of helene, i hope for a swift recovery of the communities. tragedies like these make clear what is at stake when we cannot or will not or do not prioritize resilience and adaptation.

the importance of infrastructure is misunderstood. i will not belabor the point as others have stressed, it infrastructure is the lifeblood of an economy, enabling increases in productivity and the movement of goods and people. it is also the lifeblood of communities, enabling people to access basic services like water -- we will hear from mongolia soon -- cooling, and health services. it is a priority for countries around the world, including here in the united states. indeed, we have seen historic investments in infrastructure right here. and in emerging and developing countries that face a double whammy of an existing low stock of existing and for structure assets, coupled with many cases of growing populations, infrastructure is vital to building a more prosperous, equal, and peaceful future. as i said, the world is changing. we do not need any old infrastructure. need infrastructure that is climate resilient, that is more

than a collection of various assets -- a port here, a dam th ere. we need integrated climate resilient infrastructure systems at scale. i am really proud of the biden-harris administration commitment to an approach to boosting infrastructure development in emerging markets and in developing countries. at the g7 leaders summit in 2022, president biden, alongside his g7 counterparts, established the partnership for global infrastructure investment, or pgi. the goal is to mobilize $600 billion by 2027 to deliver quality sustainable infrastructure. the united states share is $200 billion, and we have already facilitated $60 billion of public and private capital toward that pledge. more than the numbers, what is special about pgi is that it was established in recognition that how we develop infrastructure

matters. pgi is designed to offer low and middle income countries a comprehensive system -- transparent, value driven financing option for info structure development. in this effort, agencies across the usg, including usaid, my department, treasury -- work with like minded partners across government, the private sector, and multilateral development banks, in a way that i hope is aligned with the fabulous support we are launching today -- resilience at scale, the systems approach to climate resilient infrastructure planning. system-level thinking has been central to help pgi plans, finances, and delivers infrastructure and associated development benefits. we prioritize a core door approach. i will describe that more in a minute -- to identify overlapping and synergistic projects in strategic and

geographically linked areas. we also embedded in our thinking that infrastructure has purpose to improve health, to promote gender equality. let me explain the corridor approach for an example. for hurricane milton, president biden will be making historic trips. he will have visited a pgi priority corridor. pgi is making investments in rated -- rail and road infrastructure. and there is port infrastructure in angola. alongside these transport corridors, pgi is also investing in grain storage, and processing hubs, recognizing the importance of boosting our productivity along the corridor, critical mineral refineries. it is not enough to extract the minerals. clean energy transmission and

distribution projects. it gives us an opportunity to increase access to industry for small businesses and households, and connectivity around the rails, roads, and ports, to name a few examples. we have understood that we need to plan individual infrastructure assets in the context of a larger system. not only because it strengthens the economic case for those investments, but also because it enables the delivery of broad and deep development benefits for the governments, businesses, households, and communities that host the infrastructure. this systems approach to infrastructure development allows for cost-effective deployment of public resources, encourages participation, and enables broad development impacts. this systems approach of course requires thinking about risks, including climate risks, across

the whole system as well. we were collectively making good progress on building the resilience of individual assets -- say a building to earthquakes -- and feeling pretty good about it. that simply is not enough. as the resilience at scale report highlights so well, failure to have resilient systems can be disastrous. i quote from the report. the failure of one infrastructure component can trigger simultaneous failures or cascading collapse, with profound impact on communities and ecosystems. the good news is that the upside of a resilient systems approach is great. reliability of infrastructure services improves. economic losses have reduced and cost-effectiveness increases. multiple assets can be protected at once. and progress on broader development goals can be

supported. so what does it take to work differently? or is the report challenges, to work more smartly? first, all actors must embrace this new way of working, with urgency. this means all actors recognizing the importance of understanding, calculating, integrating, and planning for climate vulnerabilities and climate risks. all actors must embrace a systems report -- systems approach, working much more collaboratively. each actor needs to think beyond the one asset they are financing, or the one asset they are prioritizing. and yes, planning. we need much more investment, thorough and smart infrastructure planning. this is not just about financing. it is about a mindset. it is about technical assistance. it is about know-how. we need much more financing for adaptation.

ultimately, this requires countries taking control and ownership of their national infrastructure planning so they work with development partners, with the private sector. they're getting investment to help build and strengthen climate resilient infrastructure systems that align with their own priorities. the president's emergency plan for adaptation and resilience is a whole of government effort that fully embraces a holistic way of working. let me add a bit about treasury and what we are trying to do. let me start with financing. to meet the infrastructure requirements of emerging markets in a way that aligns with the goals of the paris agreement would require that these markets secure annual investments of $1.6 trillion into energy transition and info structure technologies by the 20 30's. we know we cannot do this with public money alone. that is why secretary private --

secretary yellen has focused on capital preservation is a top priority. using scarce public dollars requires partnerships across government and the private sector. the renewed focus on the g20 could be quite helpful in this regard. partnerships across sectors require increased discipline around risk identification and sharing to determine models that work at scale. working hand in hand with the private sector has made clear how strong financial risk management is essential, including direct risks like climate hazards to unlock info structure projects. and given the huge investment -- the infrastructure investment financing gap, we need every public and private dollar invested in climate impacts.

countries can barely afford to build infrastructure, and they certainly cannot afford to rebuild and rebuild infrastructure. let me double-click on the role of the mpb's. in 2023, the climate finance commitments to low and no income countries reached a record high of about $75 billion, up from $60 billion in 2022. about 30% of that goes to adaptation. let me end with a point i often start with. it is not about finance. development and private finance can only be effective resources for infrastructure systems in the presence of strong enabling environments.

as the resilience at scale approach notes, beyond financial challenges, there are real critical institutional, policy, and technical requirements, planning for infrastructure resilience. we must also prioritize this work. in conclusion, i strongly believe that the u.s. government's toolkit to help countries bring climate resilient infrastructure systems at scale is robust and is diverse, and it is most effective when all parts of the toolkit work effectively together. usaid and others not on the panel working in concert with the considerable investment the united states has in the multilateral development banks and the multilateral climate fund. at its core, the report leaves

us with a simple message. work smarter. we could not have a better panel to help us understand how to take this very simple message into a very complex world. thank you very much. [applause] ms. latortue: thank you -- noam: thank you so much, alexia, the charge to work smarter. and thank you for raising the complexities of the challenges of financing and the challenges of the heightened level and necessity for collaboration. i would like to welcome our panelists on stage, and please bear with us. we just have to move some things around on stage. these come on up, and we will begin. thanks.

all right, thank you. for this part of the discussion, we are joined by four key leaders and each brings their own unique perspective to the topic. gillian caldwell is the u.s. agency for international development's chief clement officer and deputy administrator for the bureau for social security. she oversees the agency's climate and environmental work. jonathan richards serves as the deputy vice president of the infrastructure, environment, and private sector division. as deputy vice president, he oversees the climate and blended

finance work, in addition to several technical practices -- energy, water, transportation, vertical structures, and environmental and social performance. all are key to the issues of climate resistant infrastructure. we have the chief executive officer of the challenge account, mongolia. leading a water infrastructure project aiming to address water supply shortages through the construction of a large-scale wastewater recycling infrastructure, and capacity building measures. welcome. and rihanna is part of the leadership of mia moto international, a global and structural risk reduction firm. and the president's emergency plan calls for action from the private sector in 2023. within her role, she adapts

design strategies through asia, latin america, and the caribbean. welcome to you all. gillian, i want to begin with you. the emergency plan for adaptation -- your agency has been helping lead across the government about climate resilient infrastructure and systemic approaches, including this new report that alexia just mentioned. please tell us a little more. >> a little more on prepare. i think this report is a natural evolution. prepare is president biden's emergency plan for adaptation and resilience. it was launched at cop 26 in glasgow and is a whole government response to recognizing adaptation and resilience require a really comprehensive approach. we have been very focused on

advancing climate related systems, the kind of information that the people in the south of this country benefited from in the lead up to these recent hurricanes. mainstreaming resilience is a consideration across shaping all budget design in governments worldwide. and this gives the kind of gaps that alexia spoke to. so proud to have you come up mia moto, on stage, and others in the audience, responding to this call for action, which is leveraged $3 billion in commitment in 39 countries around the world. there is this interagency coordination. i'm really proud that we worked with partners at the u.s. army corps of engineers and the international development corporation to shape this new report, which i think alexia did

such a fantastic job of describing. we have to get beyond the sum of our parts, and think really collectively about what it means to design resilient infrastructure. for example, you could build a bridge which is designed to withstand flooding, if you have not considered the underlying floodplain management -- no amount of infrastructure is going to resolve that problem. i remember sitting there with the president of pakistan and his cabinet, and former special envoy terry. they said the flooding in that country was biblical in proportion. one third of the country underwater. what was left standing were usaid schools that served as emergency shelters and points of contact for people in the context of the tremendous disaster.

looking at the video streaming and from hurricanes on our own shores, you can see that a well-built building surrounded by roads that are completely impassable does us no good, because you cannot get to the people inside the building who like food and water. i think thinking comprehensively about these issues is not just about the great infrastructure -- the concrete -- but the green infrastructure, how we ensure that solutions are really doing their job to protect our environment. in the policy environment that surrounds those investments which can really catalyze further investments and make for better and more thoughtful infrastructure, or leave all that opportunity untended. noam: thank you. jonathan, let me bring you into fill in the picture of more. >> thank you. let me just say thank you to noam, and thank you for hosting

the event today. big thank you to galeon and u.s. iv -- gillian and usaid. i also want to acknowledge her colleagues from noaa, the army corps of engineers, who are not on in terms of maybe some background on the infrastructure working group, we had the pleasure to koa chair the working group. and this was established upped the prepared initiative that has been highlighted today and has worked together and has been three years of sitting down hashing out how one can build on each of the agency's efforts to better respond to climate impacts and u.s. investments are more resilient and provides critical services to communities and achieve a higher rate of economic return.

it's probably worth underscoring how this group wanted to come out with something actionable and concrete. nevertheless, we have arrived there. and the working group came out with key recommendations and talked about how we can address a critical gap in terms of how infrastructure investments are made. specifically as others noted, we need to shift away from the asset-based approach and making sure that the system as a whole is working together, if you have a school or waste water treatment plant are still viable. over the last several years, they had this interagency process pulling in actors and others to develop a proposition and best practice guide. this involves a lot of research and interviews with global

leaders and we had an in-depth work shop how can we work together to move the needle on this critical issue. the events are here today and this report which you can access the code on your seats, this is the culmination of the work group's work and bottom line it is articulated and road map and resilience results in greater resilience and lower costs. so i won't dwell on those linkages. it is very critical. but i will say we are pleased to stand along side all of the others who made a commitment as a system in our program and shout out to usaid, army corps

of engineers. what does it mean? for those who know that, we have a fairly unique development model and provide large-scale grants and important investments in low and middle-income countries that are targeted to unlock constraints of economic growth and poverty. our grants are $350 million going into a single country and infrastructure investment is a big part of that. reliable infrastructure is critical for economic growth. in fact, since m.c.c.'s establishment in 2004 we invested 16 billion in 47 different low and middle-income countries arranging for energy, agriculture, transport, schools, health centers. and the need for global investment and infrastructure is

huge. the financing gap is expected to grow to $15 trillion and some estimates are greater. at the same time, climate change is threatening all of that and communities, rising sea levels, more floods, shifting patterns of drought. and seeing it in the u.s. but other countries are less able to afford the measures and steps that need to be taken to deal with that. so i think i'll end here with a couple of examples of what it looks like and i want to underscore the point that our partner countries are on the front lines and our experience has shown this already taking resilience is critical and our countries also see this. and you'll hear from the leader of the mongolian compact and

taking an approach has been fundamental to ensure that water is provided, safe and reliable drinking water is provided to the capital city. in addition, our 649 million compact in indonesia of how to take a systems approach in our newer programs. the indonesia compact includes a project that invests in the institutional infrastructure to plan and invest in infrastructure systems. this focuses on equipping five provincial governments and planning and infrastructure and helping the governments develop road maps and prioritize infrastructure development based on the system analysis and bringing funds to the table to actually develop those products that are put forward by the

indonesian government and bring our grant dollars and bring in private sector financing. lastly, on the mozambique, $500 million program. m.c.c. and the governor recognized earlier on the increased frequency and intensity of storms and the risk that climate changes affects. cyclone freddie was the longest lasting cyclone in the world. it hit once and twice. we developed a system of load investments that looked at the network as a whole and incorporated arrangements for operations and included $200 million to replace a bridge over the river if you go on the bridge, the storm comes in, the

water is almost overtopling it. so bringing this -- and good example to ensure that that transport link is maintained. that is a lot. and turn it back to you. >> it's good to begin to context you lies and what it can look like. and we have an wonderful opportunity to do just that. we are happy to have you here in washington and tell us about the work inmon goala and how it -- in mongolia. >> mongolia is one of the most water stressed countries in the world and climate change is a major factor to this because

mongolia is affected by climate change. the average temperature in mongolia increased by one of the highest in the world. and 70% of our land is affected. this is from rural to urban areas and over 1.6 million people and over half reside in a single city, our capital. in addition, it is home to 2/3 of all the -- [indiscernible] so i think all this highlights critical infrastructure such as power and water supply in improving this in the face of the climate change. back in 2016, joint u.s.-mongolian study identify

water shortage as one of the constraints. and studies from mid-20 20's faced a water supply shortage. it works to preemptively to this is will increase the water supply about 80%. so we are implementation of investment activities. [indiscernible] we are constructing wells that will unleash ground water for residential use. and building state of the art advanced pure fix that will purify the water. [indiscernible]

so around this time next year when they come on-line will have doubling the current water supply. i want to highlight these new fields are constructed under a heavily industrialized area where for decades waste water has been dumped into the area. we are eliminating these constraints and to create economic value and enhance the quality of life of our people. so in addition to the 55 million cubic meters of water, 23 million is used for heat and power generation, which is we are the coldest capital in the world. the waste water activation

activities is aimed to decrease the fresh water demand by using waste water. the waste water that we are building under the compact will treat somest effluent and will create up to 18 million out of the 20 million cubic meters of fresh water with recycled waste water. mongolia will be able to save $38 billion worth of fresh water each year. mongolia will have a brand new water source in the form of waste water and will be able for the first time to consciously and deliver and implement water supply and management.

this is part of the puzzle. so basically, in short, what this activity needs to do is strengthen the capacity of its institutional, operational and human resources capacity of water utilities to properly operate and maintain. and second, it introduces a sound and self-sustaining framework to unable cost recovery. and third, it is undertaking actions to increase -- to improve water governors for years to come and unable the -- enable to continuities commitment. i think the mongolia water compact is an approach towards aid that can really help urban areas in the face of climate change. >> thank you so much.

it pains a specific picture of coming together using waste water instead of potable in the coldest call of the world and reversing what you had seen as the trend which is the water shortages. thank you for sharing that example. how does the private sector led to the approach described? and what are the advantages and challenges of taking the systems approach that we are all seeking pleasure to be here with a distinguished panel and thank you for organizing this and we are part of the call for action and get chance to dive into. and tell you about the work. and the work we do before diving

into the specific question. we have the global engineering firm with a humanitarian focus and work under management response. we tackle from the disaster management and response cycle. to relief, construction and that is a long-term development side. and part of a company that has this. we have about 75 years of experience, 20-plus offices around the global and we are a multi disciplinary team to tackle housing, community engagement. so back to infrastructure and let's say more -- i think we

talk about infrastructure resilience and system-based resilience. ultimately, we are about empowering communities and building long-term sustainability and that requires a holistic approach. that will and some of the points that have been made by the panelists. we like to call or say that we focus on what we call a three-way approach. this means the first is really looking at multiple dynamics. there is a dependency on different dynamics and need to understand those, from growth to energy and networks and public spaces to connect activity. we need to understand how they come together and what their relationships and dependencies

as well as lack of dependencies. the success of the physical infrastructure of roads and drain age. can we protect those that allow that. if we focus on one, building flood barriers that might solve one solution but brings about a lack of diversity or service to another. we have to think about this. if we don't think of local governance and settlements might be left out of the solutions and some of the social and economic diversity we are seeing. this idea of engaging in multiple dynamics is the first. the second is resilience is linked. we have to look at the scale of

the infrastructure to the neighborhood, to the larger kind of city and regional approach. again, we might be looking at a house and raising that house so the flood levels won't affect it and how we can interact with different green corridors and allow that water to happen. we might be looking at restoring some of the wetlands and looking at as an overall network system and supporting the ecosystem. we have to look at these multiple scales as we approach those. and the third really multi hazard. and it's ease for us but it is compounding it and we have to

look at them together and it's not just about making it which used to be our bread and butter and through the last 15 years. there is also floods, drought, erosion, climate change and becoming more and more relevant and alarming as well. so we have to start tackling those all together. those are the three for the resilience. second is really how do we equip our team and the resources to be able to provide action around us. and i will say we will need to create multi disciplinary teams that work in multi disciplinary fashion. and we have to get beyond our silo approach and have these

discussions. i'm a clear example of that. i'm an architect by trade but we work with architects with nature-based solutions and even biologiesists trying to seek this knowledge and integrate it together. and the third point i want to stress overall is we need local actions and i'm so excited to be with my colleagues here but we need local action, promote local leadership and you know we have 20 different offices and led by local staffs. one clear example is haiti. that office is still running and when we don't have an office, the importance of partnering with local partners and bring that knowledge and want to understand the local governance

and can support in a much more grounded perspective of wall that can mean in that complex. and enhancing the channels through knowledge exchange and seeking to create not just around the building but a solid understanding around resilience where we can be alined with a system-based approach to tackle the challenges that we face. >> wonderful to have different perspectives on this central issue. having deliberated on the systems approach with experts inside and outside the u.s. government and having developed this resilience at scale report that articulates the different considerations we are hearing

articulated and stakeholders can take. what needs to happen next. what will other agencies do to fulfill this approach that has been articulated? >> well, i think it really underscores the need for more planning and coordination first and foremost which may not always be popular to move with the demands on the grouped being what they are. but sometimes you have to move slowly to move more quickly. take for example, the philippines, you talk about intracorporate coordination. 30 different federal agencies engaged in thinking through various equities when it comes to water management. that represents the kind of

thinking you want but it could be a recipe for disaster without appropriate coordinations. usaid created a water management authority and synthesize the work and mandates going forward. that is critically necessary and making sure you are doing the comprehensive vulnerability and risk assessments that goes beyond the individual in the infrastructure you are developing. and think about the surrounding ecosystem both in the ecosystem infrastructure and the natural environment. going back to planning, engage the stakeholders, civil society, local communities, the government, making sure those conversations are had because everyone has a piece of the puzzle and need a unifying and

comprehensive way forward. and this is what makes the investment so challenging where infrastructure is concerned. we need to think about the life cycle cost. people think in terms of the upfront cost rather than thinking about how those extra efforts you make to extend the life of that infrastructure by decades, saving you money and helping you on the increase of possibility. when it comes to the private sector, so much of the prepared to action and call to usaid has been setting the stage. what can we do to derisk those investments. can they bring risk insurance to the table. are there guarantees available. you don't want to displace

private capital where it is moving already, where infrastructure is concerned, we have an enormous gap and need to bring the private sector more fully into the terrain. those are the nings that i would mention and one more point on policy and coming in as donor governments with projects valid at hundreds of millions of dollars, taking the opportunity to think with the government about the enabling policy government is necessary, we do need that public investment. in cases where the state and national governments have the capacity to levy appropriate taxes understanding there may be limitations for the co-investments that are so necessary to think about green roofs and storm water

management, it creates an environment that will be conducive to the kind of investment we need. >> it expands on the point about the remarks about enabling environment. jonathan, i want to turn to you, from your perspective, how do you expect this more systemic approach, your agency is embracing, is that going to -- you brought? the example of indonesia and mozambique. how are they going to develop that? >> that's a key question. i give good examples and going forward and it is fair to say we are still working on it and work in progress. as i reflect on that broader question of now what, what does

it mean, i highlight through core areas. and each of them touch some what m.c.c. does in all of its work. when we start our engagement with a country, we do a series of analyses. we do economic analyses saying what the constraints to growth, what are the constraints and opportunities. we started doing natural capital and climate vulnerabilities. what is the picture and target our interventions to address it. we have been weaving climate into that and our constraints. but what i think is different now as we look forward is this system lens. we really have been more asset-focused.

and there are good examples where we haven't. that is where we are going than where we have been. as we look to that path going forward, we are going to see us being more deliberate in active planning and master planning that gets at the system and not bringing in the climate resilience. and part of that is recognizing that the countries where we work often don't have master plans. they are limited, dated and much of them don't take climate into account. as we go through that process, i think we may well see some differences in what our programs look like. maybe there is a different piece of the infrastructure system that needs addressing than others. the second piece i want to hit on has been touched on, the policy institution national reforms and something that has been very central to all of our

m.c.c.'s work. we go in and look at what policy and regulatory reforms are critical and necessary for our interventions of our program and then we build that into our package of investments. as we look forward bringing in this climate in systems resilience lens, we are going to be more deliberate in bringing that into the conversation of institutional policy reforms and do that kind of planning and master planning on their own and given the tools to prioritize and develop infrastructure systems. the third that i'll mention is coming back to weighing the cost and benefits and this is a central piece that m.c.c. does. we do a cost benefit analysis and say given the sector, where do we get the most out of our

grant dollars and what are the constraints and how do we achieve a solid rate of return for our returns. we have been looking at systems as part of that exercise but not the climate resilience component of it. as we do the cost benefits, different costs to bring into that calculus but what are the benefits, what are the been tits of giving it back to the life cycle cost and put some additional funding up front and have a much greater impact on infrastructure in the longer term. and the last piece, the private sector is really key. this is a big push. we have grant money that many others do not and we really push and work hard to leverage that to cat lies investment. and we do it in the climate space.

but as we bring the infrastructure, doing it in a wayinfrastructure, do it in a wy that reinforces resilience, i think is going to be very important and shape whatever programs will look like going forward. >> on that third point, and terms of the cost-benefit analysis, i imagine it complicates the analysis when you start to take into account as opposed to just say it -- historical data to think about some of the benefits or costs. you talked about it, in terms of the forecasting of water shortages, in the case of mongolia. how does that factor into your cost calculus -- that would factor into your cost calculus i would imagine. looking back on the planning and design for mongolia's water compact, are there elements who may have benefited even more from a more systemic approach and how do you build on what you are already carrying out, to

connect your work to other parts of the infrastructure network that exists in the r across the country? -- in the capital or across the country? >> i do believe, that some components such as the -- actions, they are equally important as the physical assets of the building, especially in terms of ensuring the long-term sustainability of the compact investments. which i think honestly otherwise might have been challenging for the government to prioritize. for instance, as we near the end of the compact, government is working to update existing regulatory frameworks that they have to introduce new dimensions

on recycled wastewater use. they are aiming to expand recycled water use beyond power and heat generation, to other sectors as well. they are also planning to introduce financial incentives to further encourage water reuse instead of using fresh for industrial purposes, which i think is extremely important. another example is the government does also plan to build on the outcome of the compact to address certain challenges. such as air pollution, which is

ranked worst in the world, and also traffic and so on. -- detailed studies to provide these settlement areas, so i think these are examples of what the government is doing to work beyond the compact. >> absolutely. in what ways is this more systemic approach on the part of u.s. government agencies and other donors and stakeholders, has an impact on what mia moto is trying to do or even what mia moto is trying to do through its commitment through to call -- through the call to action? >> let me tell you about what we are doing.

i will take a step back and then jump to how a more systemic approach can help propagate leadership in the call for action, and really being a catalyst for us and catalyzing and enabling -- to be more -- one of the key pillars of the prepare contract is the effect of knowledge generation and addressing critical knowledge gaps and that is what we are doing. we are bringing technical expertise to try and fill in what we see. our focus has been on climate resilience, housing in particular but we have noticed there are a lot of guidelines and quite a bit of work focusing on infrastructure. not necessarily on housing. even for governments or multilaterals, to have a very

easy -- i don't necessarily want to call it a guide to but a very easy reference tool to understand what other solutions can be that can be developed and be relevant to specific contexts. we are ultimately consolidating retrofit guides for climate resilient housing and communities and we have launched an open source challenge to crowd source, to consolidate different case studies for organizations to form an informal coalition where we can showcase some of the solutions on housing and climate resilience and community resilience. that repository should be live soon, it will allow us to come together, for organizations to create more knowledge exchanges, so again, back to having more system based approaches and that will help us move forward in

creating this coalition by allowing these discussions to be had by creating these bridges with other organizations in creating awareness for stakeholders. in the implementation and operational sense and the projects we address is creating that awareness for the different stakeholders and sometimes local mia's abilities, to emphasize over them to understand the importance. having the backing of -- and having contracts like prepare allow us to move forward in a much more efficient manner, being able to back up what we are saying and being able to partner with other organizations. >> i have probably 10 more questions i would like to ask but then i will pick one and then i'm also going to invite the audience to think about your questions for our panel of experts. this is a question for all of

you, from your different perspectives. why is it important for american people and businesses, that the u.s. government is actively trying to pursue more systemic approaches to climate resistant infrastructure? how might you answer that, if a member of congress asked that question, what is the answer to that from your own vantage point? anybody want to jump in? who is having thoughts? >> obviously, in the world we are facing today, with climate, horrible conflict we are seeing in places like the middle east, ukraine, just reinforces the importance of ally ship and

strong relationships with partners on the ground. the u.s. government is really striving to be a partner of choice, when it comes to these countries, low and middle income countries, to provide the kind of intellectual partnership, the funding and the long-term thinking that we need, to ensure that stability and growth of the economy. we are also doing work that sets the stage for u.s. private sector growth and development. when it comes to supporting countries transitioning to renewable energy, one of our signature interventions is shaping free, fair and transparent options for energy, that u.s. energy developers can bid on, to ensure these governments are getting a fair

and predictable price over time, to build up that renewable energy infrastructure, and u.s. businesses are able to compete fairly in the context of those options. that is one of many examples where u.s. businesses, u.s. employees and the u.s. economy benefits from the partnerships we are talking about. >> thank you. >> just to complement what killian noted -- what gillian noted, we are economically a very interdependent world. i don't think everyone realizes that we haul -- but we all experienced during the covid pandemic what happens when supply chains break down, whether you are talking about global food production, manufacturing, transport, shipping of goods, when infrastructure breaks down in one other part of the world, it has a knock on effect in other parts of the world. prices go up, availability goes

down. there is a value in the u.s. investing in the things we are talking about, in terms of resilient infrastructure. when a system goes down, people overseas don't have access to basic services like education and power. perhaps sometimes it is considered abstract but it can get very real very fast. >> interdependence goes both ways. i was just reading yesterday about how last week's storm and this week's storm, hitting the southeast of the u.s. have affected 85% of domestic supply of iv fluids. just by chance of where those industries and factories sit in the u.s. and we are having to look externally at attentional sources, to help people dealing with illness. >> i think the u.s. is one of the leading sources of

humanitarian aid and as we see more and more extreme weather events, growing in frequency and intensity, the price tag for that kind of aid continues to go up. another partner in the prepare call to action said that for every one dollar, prepping one dollar, and that preparedness in that resilience, you save $13. six dollars in damage and cleanup and seven dollars in knock on economic benefits. it is not only being smarter about how you invest those public dollars. >> do you have something to add? >> i think my answer to this question would be briefer. mongolians have a saying that a gift is a true gift when both the receiving and giving parties are happy. i think a systemic approach,

basically u.s. taxpayer funds are spent on meaningful projects that truly make a difference in parts of the country and the people in that country. at the same time, these infrastructure projects, these investments are able to withstand challenges. four challenges presented by climate change, and also at the same time, they achieve foreign policy objectives for priorities both countries have. >> anything to add? >> i will put on my private sector hat and say that it supports businesses and local businesses to be able to export services. but also allows and fosters the exchange that we can have around technical capacity and economics . it is a win win. >> let me turn to the audience,

someone will come around with a mic. please raise your hand to indicate you have a question. we will also take this gentleman on the others of the room. always good to get exercise as you are running mics around the room. >> good morning everyone and thank you to the panelists. just one quick question that i have, i am curious to learn how your organizations are thinking about innovation and algae and what is that role when it comes to climate resilience infrastructure. >> thank you for the question. this gentleman on the others of the room had a question and we will take those questions together. >> hello. i wanted to harken back to --

that was the core door analogy and i'm thinking of when you walk in, there were something at the forefront of building out this approach and what is it and i haven't heard much about -- being at the forefront and i wanted to hear more about it from each organization. thank you so much. >> two great questions, covering different topics on innovation and technology, also equity and justice. we don't have to go on any particular order, but if someone has a thought on either of those questions, please jump in. who wants to go first? >> i am happy to start. maybe just a couple of thoughts and i appreciate the question of innovation and technology. this is something that we are also increasingly thinking a lot about and how we can do a better

job of bringing that into our program, how you leverage and bring in that expertise in the private sector and we also talk about the private sector being a source of money, but it is not just money, it is expertise. certainly we talk about technology, we have a growing push on digital and digital technologies, but also across the board whether we are looking at agriculture or looking at more advanced irrigation technologies, working in the power sector, and technologies for managing and ensuring the power, we are trying to be deliberate in terms of how we build that into our programs and provide opportunities, often through finance tools like matching grants or ways to bring the private sector into the market that they might not otherwise go into. we have also been working closely with the small business administration, trying to

develop with them, to tap into areas technologies that are incubated by the u.s. government. very cutting edge ways, trying to formally bring those into our programs as well. i will be honest, it is not always an easy thing to do, given our timelines but definitely something it is top of mind. >> let me just speak to equity because that is such a core value for you and absolutely central to our climate strategies and one of the core underlying principles. concretely, it means we have committed to investing in indigenous people in local communities and especially when you think about the climate crisis, it is so fundamental to recognize that indigenous communities steward a majority of the carbon landscape. study after study demonstrates they do so better than others even in the context of

management. these are communities that are not just not too often neglected or overwritten in the context of development projects, but in many cases, actively persecuted, many indigenous leaders are assassinated for their efforts to protect their lands and way of life. indigenous people and local communities are fundamental. women and other disadvantaged groups are complete fundamental. if you want to be sustainable in your development solutions, you must ensure that women are at the table in terms of shaping. that is what ensures the stick to it if this -- stick to it-iveness. the usa is under a broader banner of localization, a commitment to quadruple our investments in locally based organizations and to ensure that

at least half of our investments by 2025 are shaped and led by those local organizations and it is not a secret that an organization like usa and a lot of the bilateral agencies, the investments tend to go to larger multinational organizations. that makes sense because of course we are thinking about stewarding vass sums of money. project design requirements, but at the same time, what can we do to streamline some of the approaches while ensuring the responsible at the to steward those public resources carefully, because smart strategic sustainable development requires the inclusion of local partners. >> just briefly, i would be remiss if i didn't put in a plug for mcc's recently released gender and social inclusion

policy. i talk about things that are fundamental to mcc and we look at equity and social inclusion, this is something we've hit on since the beginning and continue to grow and deepen. it is critical to make sure that when we are investing that -- in the types of programs we are investing in, at the end of the day it is about people and we are talking about ensuring that women benefit, the disadvantaged groups, that is the way we are approaching it and it is central to what we do. >> a couple points, the first one on rnd, very interested in making our work more efficient. facilitating the services that provide. we are partnering with other organizations. we use a lot of the satellite imagery to allow us to report.

it is very difficult to get in because it is life-threatening at that point, so we use these live imagery to get a better sense of what the movements are happening in a structure space, so that is one, partnering with other organizations that already have technology we can use to help. the other one is of course, trying to -- especially looking at these multiple dynamics, multiple scale, looking at technology to help us quantify a lot of what we are doing, quantifying benefits but also the interests of the partner organization. being able to layer these different layers around trying to prioritize where in a city, we have to put more emphasis, it's put in that population density, let's put in the different hazards map, where is

the critical infrastructure, and let's have all of these together and using technology allows us to quantify that very clearly, where we can automatically start seeing the prioritization of different areas and allows us to prioritize actions. always actively seeking new partnerships and new types of technology that can make our work more efficient. in terms of equity, that is such a great question. ultimately a lot of the work we do is informal settlements. areas that are more badly hit, by climate change and other disasters, so the work we do is on the co-creation side. in part because it allows us to bring all of these different voices that need to be there, so that we can have the inclusivity , more accessibility in the discussion, but also for the

local governance aspect. these are areas where the government isn't necessarily present, where they won't necessarily be able to come in and maintain infrastructure, and there is a very -- in being able to cook create with the community to empower the community and create local strategies or enhance local governance strategies so that maintenance and operations can happen in the long run. ultimately what we don't want to happen is support and intervention that collapses because it is not appropriated and not necessarily being able to be maintained, so i think being able to have those discussions, the platform to be able to co-create when possible. >> thank you for that question, both of those questions because i think either one could have a whole session to dig into them. when i think about rnd for

example, i think about different types of research and development on construction, new challenges, but i also think about observing, remote-sensing data and the ability of ai to enhance analysis, to provide better climate information services that local businesses around the world really need and farmers need, to be more resilient. there is a lot that is happening in this space. let's turn to one last question and then we will wrap up. i saw this hand go up first. we will take you, and i apologize to those others but this'll be the last question. we do have a reception afterwards, so you will have time to chat more about this. please are member to introduce yourself. -- please remember to introduce yourself. >> thank you to the panelists. my name is rachel law, i am incoming as a fellow at usaid. my question is, a lot of these

larger infrastructure projects can be quite contentious, especially internationally and in communities that have been continuously hurt by the exacerbation of climate impacts. my question is, what kind of social engineering work is being done to support the infrastructure design being done , the necessary support that needs to come from communities and the engineering and design work being done? >> thank you for the question and welcome to your first day. this is a great question for us

to sort of wrap into, as well as we go across our panel. i think i will add to it, that we've talked about the system's more holistic approach that requires a whole level change in terms of collaboration, which to your point can something -- sometimes slow things down but also makes it better over the long term. i think the question also connects to that in terms of focusing on the social support needed to ensure sustainability and success of climate resilient infrastructure. how do we get there, and we have the tools that we need? we need to invest differently to do this better, to do what our questioner is asking? limit go down the line, and we will wrap -- let me go down the line, and we will wrap up that way. >> -- so that your investments are really meeting the needs of

communities. going back to the bridge i started with the floodplain surrounding it, is there a bicycle lane necessary to reduce vehicular traffic and emissions? what about roadside stands for shopkeepers who are actually trying to sell their goods along the road? how are we going to address air pollution, and the sustainability of that infrastructure? for the people in the floodplain, how do we think about their -- that they depend on to survive, as well as their ability to farm and fish in the area? looking at all of the assets and physical assets, as a system that is deeply interrelated, and that connects to people in nature and needs to be informed by people in their perspective

as well as nature and its needs. >> i think that speaks to the entered interdisciplinary approach, which gets to the social side of these heart infrastructure projects. >> maybe a few thoughts, thinking about where to go from here and how to make this work and maybe first is to touch directly at the question. i feel like i have said a number of times that something that is fundamental to mcc is what we call country ownership. that is something that is essential in everything we do. we do it in partnership with our partner countries. that starts at the very beginning when we talk about what are the needs. highly engaged at every level of national government, we start shaping what the actual investment is. our programs, they are developed

by our industry partners, and they are the ones that implement them and do them. i think that helps ensure that the stuff we support is owned and supported. going back to your bigger question, we touched on coordination. i think you'll even see in the commitments we've made about sharing information and new data and tools, i think that is all relevant here, and i spoke a lot about the working group and the government coordination, but it's got to be broader than that. it is bringing in the private sector, bringing in ngo's, insurance industries on the front lines of climate change. they've got the map, the statistics. we are working with noa with some of the best climate data. developing data, sharing data, looking at different tools and approaches.

i have no doubt we will continue to grapple with that, but we also want to learn from others and then maybe just a final point, we've also touched on this, but financing. i think it is very clear, we have tried to make the case that an investment upfront in resilient infrastructure pays dividends in the lifecycle. generally speaking, it costs more on the front end and how do you mobilize those funds? it'll be a combination of private sector and government donors, etc. >> i just want to echo jonathan's statement here in terms of country ownership and enrollment by the partner country. we started on compact development. what projects to implement, at all levels by the government and not only the government, the private sector, the experts, the

practitioners, this kind of extensive dialogue to ensure that the country actually owns the project and stays responsible through them mentation. coordination and collaboration, i could not agree more. most of the countries, if not all that partner with donors are developing countries. it is common for these countries to lack necessary expertise and resources to effectively execute these projects and ensure their long-term sustainability. i think these are the types of collaborations and coordinations between stakeholders although they may have different agendas or priorities, but they will coordinate effectively toward the same goal and it can make a mile of difference. >> i will just compliment by

saying there are variant -- there is various frameworks and it is not necessarily about rehab -- reinventing the wheel. a lot of the multilateral's has a wonderful resource. where we see the challenge is from that discourse and the conceptualization to the actual implementation on the ground and many times, this also happens because of existing funding issues, where funding is still very much coming in silos. also in terms of the actual implementation, where we see the silo approach or a different type of institutional framework that doesn't necessarily allow this interdisciplinary approach for the coordination. one of the emphasis we need to

place from a policy perspective is how to start bridging some of these gaps. one other point i wanted to make on r&d, we are going back to understanding and leveraging and supporting much more on the -- side, expanding construction, sustainable materials and technologies that for so long got ignored because -- again, echoes back to equity and community. i just wanted to stress that point and i will finalize by saying that the need is so great. obviously financing is a critical component of it, but this is a compounding challenge, it is a humanitarian crisis, and globally speaking and what we see is that it does demand a new

approach to how we are developing infrastructure, how we are thinking about infrastructure, but also on the private sector side, we need more purpose driven private sector engagement, so it is not just on the financing but leveraging what you can do and how we can work together on this. >> well thank you. this has been a tremendous discussion, and it is built upon tremendous work, including the report by various agencies of the u.s. government led by mcc. i want to thank our expert panelists, and i want to make sure i also think madeline mclean from my team who is in the room, and our conferencing and audio and visual support teams for putting this together and they also want to thank some colleagues from the u.s. government side as well.

this wouldn't have happened without tremendous cooperation. [applause] thank you for your continued leadership on the set of issues and climate resigned infrastructure issues. we hope to have many of you join us here again, two weeks from today. we are going to host a senior climate advisor to president biden, as well as the brazil secretary and ambassador and a fellow lineup of double leaders on the margins of the bank imf meetings and cup 29 and upcoming g20 meetings. i want to close this out and invite all of you here in the room, close out our live stream and then invite you here in the room to join us for a reception just outside this room, but i also want to make sure to invite some others from the u.s.

government. there are a whole host of leaders across the u.s. government on the president's emergency plan for adaptation and resilience and i would like to welcome you up on stage for a group photo and then we will join everyone for the reception. thank you. [applause]

obama is among those speaking at a rally for kamala harris. live coverage on c-span. >> wow. what a crowd. i have one question for this crowd, are you ready to win? are you ready to elect kamala harris and tim walz? and are you ready to help me win this united states senate seat? all right. now, isn't it great to have president barack obama with us tonight? i'm going to introduce him in a moment. i've got a couple things to say first. we are so grateful you are here tonight. you are here tonight because you love our country.

that is why you are here tonight. and i cannot thank you enough for loving your country enough to be here with us tonight. this is a fight this year about a lot of key issues for families. but i think at the core of this campaign, at the national level, here in pennsylvania, it is a fight about two rings. the first is rights. the fight for voting rights, women's rights, workers rights. all on the line. but this is also a fight about working families, about working together to help our working families to lower costs, to fight the fentanyl crisis, and to take care of the most vulnerable among us. our kids, seniors, people with disabilities, helping our

veterans. that is what we do as democrats. now, i've got something to say about my opponent, a couple of things. my opponent is a former hedge fund ceo. and he told some lies in this campaign. he lied about living in pennsylvania when he was living in connecticut. he lied about how he grew up. he said he came from nothing. that is what he said. he had a pretty good upbringing, like i did. we were lucky to have strong families and to grow up with a lot of advantages. he should tell a different story about that. he also lied about creating jobs in pennsylvania, when he outsourced jobs from pennsylvania to india and china. he should not lie about that. he also lied -- well, we just

get past that. you know, this is a candidate who did not vote in pennsylvania for 15 years. while we are here in pennsylvania working for the people, working altogether like we all were, he was somewhere else in connecticut. you know what he was doing when he was in connecticut as a hedge fund ceo? investing in china, not pennsylvania. hear me out on this. he increased investments in china by 108,000% when he was ceo. he invested in the company in china that made 90% of fentanyl. he invested in chinese oil companies and steel companies. he invested in companies making bombers and missiles to help china's military. when he did all of that, he was hurting our country and hurting the people of pennsylvania. that is what he was doing.

boo is right. you know what he also bet against? when he was making investments, he bet against american steel companies, not bedding for american steel companies. -- betting for american steel companies. i want you to know, he has plans if you were to be successful. his plan is to give big tax breaks for you guessed it, the billionaires, the people making a lot of money, and the biggest corporations in the world. you know what happens when they do that? they put medicare, medicaid, and social security on the chopping block. we are not way to do that in america. we are not going to cut those programs to give billionaires a tax cut. now, these out-of-state billionaires know that i won't vote for the tax cuts. i have already proven that. i voted against the billionaire

tax cuts of 2017. so they are mad at me that i am going after them on corporate greed as well. you know what they are doing? we are spending more than $100 million to defeat me in this race. well i got news for those billionaires. i am going to beat david mccormick and i am going to beat those billionaires. [cheers and applause] yep. now, i need you to help me. i need you to help me. go to bobcasey.com and help us to fight off those billionaires. we are grateful you are here tonight, because tonight we are here to focus on the future. the future of our commonwealth and our country. and tonight as well, we are honored tonight to welcome back to the city of pittsburgh, someone who has been here a lot, who campaigned here when he ran for president the first time, the second time, and helping candidates after that.

you remember what he did. there's a lot we could list here, but i will just make it very brief. you know what he did to lead our country in passing the affordable care act, right? [applause] and i not only voted for that legislation, i fought off all the attempts to gut it and to repeal it. here's what that bill meant to the people of pennsylvania. there are 1.4 million pennsylvanians who have health care solely because of the affordable care act. so, and we know that so many pennsylvanians, hundreds and hundreds of thousands of them, have coverage for pre-existing conditions because of that affordable care act. so tonight, tonight, as we come

here tonight to talk about winning these campaigns for kamala harris and tim walz all the way down the ballot, we are also here to welcome back to pittsburgh and to thank him for his work for delivering for the people of pennsylvania when he was president, the 44th president of the united states, barack obama! [cheers and applause] ♪ [cheers and applause]

fmr. pres. obama: hello, pittsburgh! are you fired up? are you ready to go? all right. it is good to be back in pennsylvania. it is good to be back in pittsburgh. i love pittsburgh. you know, i love the people of pittsburgh. i love the food in pittsburgh. i don't usually do this, but this is a little bit of a yelp rating. i just had some of pamela's

pancakes. i first had those, like, 10, 15 years ago when i was running. and i was like, i need some of those pancakes this time out. even though i am from chicago, some of you may know, when i was a kid i was a steelers fan. and watching the steelers this season, i am not the only guy from chicago who likes being in pittsburgh. because so far, just fields is doing pretty good. now, before we get started, we have a moment of work to do here. so i want everyone to just settle in. we have some work to do. before we get started, i did want to say that we are

heartbroken about the loss of life in florida, north carolina, states across the southwest. we are thinking about people's, families whose lives have been upended by the storms over the last couple of weeks. i could not be more grateful for the first responders and fema professionals who have put themselves in harm's way to try and help. [applause] you know, it's times like this when we realize, having honest, competent leadership in government really matters. it makes a difference. and today i am asking you to vote for some of those leaders, including some folks we need working with your outstanding governor who you just heard from, governor josh shapiro.

we need them in harrisburg. so we need them to vote for your next auditor general, malcolm kenyadda. your next attorney general, eugene depascale. your next state treasurer, eric mclean led. and my buddy, your outstanding united states senator, bob casey. [cheers and applause] here in pennsylvania, there are three ways to vote. you can vote early, in person, at the county election office, or at a satellite office. you can also vote by mail. if you need to figure out how to do that, just go to iwillvote.com/pa to find a place

to vote early or request a ballot. and of course you can vote at your election polling place november 5. but if you are at this rally, let's face it, you are probably voting, unless you are 12. so, you also have to help your friends and family make a plan to vote. even if you are 12, you can do that. talk to your mom and dad and aunts and uncles. because together, we have a chance to choose a new generation of leadership in this country and start building a better and stronger and fairer and more hopeful america. now, you've already heard tonight, this election is going to be tight. because there are a lot of americans who are still struggling out there. still striving to make life

better for themselves, for their families, and for their kids. and let's face it, as a country, we've been through a lot these last few years. we had a historic pandemic. wreaking havoc on communities and business. disruptions from the pandemic then caused prices to spike, and that put a strain on family budgets. and in many ways it has felt like the aspirations of working people have taken a backseat to the priorities of the rich and the powerful. so i get it, why people are looking to shake things up. i mean, i am the hopey, changey guy. so i understand people feeling frustrated and feeling we can do better. what i cannot understand is why

anybody would think that donald trump will shake things up in a way that is good for you, pennsylvania. i don't understand that. [cheers and applause] because there is absolutely no evidence that this man thinks about anybody but himself. i've said it before. donald trump is a 78-year-old billionaire who has not stopped whining about his problems since he rolled down his golden escalator nine years ago. you've got the tweets in all caps, the ranting and the raving about crazy conspiracy theories. the two-hour speeches, word

salad, just -- it's like fidel castro, just on and on. constant attempts to sell you stuff. who does that? selling you gold sneakers and a $100,000 watch, and most recently, a trump bible. he wants you to buy the word of god, donald trump edition. god is there right next to matthew and luke. i mean, you could not make this stuff up. if you saw it on saturday night live you would say, no, that's going too far. no, he's doing that. it's crazy. and the reason he does it, is because all he cares about is

his ego and his money and his status. he's not thinking about you. donald trump sees power as nothing more than a means to an end. he wants the middle class to pay the price for another huge tax cut that would mostly help him and his country club buddies. doesn't care if he costs more women their reproductive freedom because it will make a difference in his life. do not boo. vote. [cheers and applause] they can't hear your boos, but they can hear your votes. most of all, donald trump wants us to think that this country is hopefully -- hopelessly divided

between us and them. between the quote-unquote real americans who support him, in the outsiders who don't. because having people divided and angry, he figures boosts his chances of being elected. and he doesn't care who gets hurt. think about it. just the other day, we learned that on january 6, a couple years ago, donald trump was told that mike pence was in the capitol about 40 feet from an angry mob chanting, "hang mike pence." and his response was, quote, "so what?" don't boo. if donald trump does not care that a mob might attack his own vice president, do you think he

cares about you? pennsylvania, we do not need four more years of that. we don't need four more years of arrogance and bumbling and bluster and division. america is ready to turn the page. we are ready for a better story, one that helps us work together instead of turning against each other. pennsylvania, we are ready for a president kamala harris. [cheers and applause] and the good news is, kamala harris is ready to do the job. this is a leader who has spent her life fighting on behalf of people who need a voice and a chance.

somebody who was raised in the middle class. who worked a summer job at mcdonald's while she earned a degree. who believes in the values that built this country. somebody who has served with distinction in every office that she has ever held. i think we probably had a fainting spell back there, so let's make space for the emergency folks. this happens sometimes. everybody bend your knees a little bit. you have been standing for a while. you can dance if you want. she'll be ok. kamala is as prepared for the job as any nominee for president has ever been. that's who kamala is.

and in the white house, she will have an outstanding partner in governor tim walz. tim is a veteran, he is a teacher, he's a coach, he's a hunter, he's been a great governor working with democrats and republicans to get stuff done. he can also take a vintage truck apart and put it back together again. you think donald trump can do that? for that matter, do you think donald trump has ever changed a tire in his life? i'm just trying to picture it. [chuckling] the point is, if you elect kamala and tim, they won't be

focused on their problems, they will be focused on yours. they understand that too many folks here in pennsylvania and across the country are struggling to pay the bills. even though wages are steadily growing and inflation is finally slowing, the price of everything, from health-care care to housing and groceries, it is still too high. that takes a real bite out of paychecks. it hurts. so the question is, who is really going to do something about it? that is what you should be asking yourself. now, donald trump's plan is to do what he did last time, which was given another massive tax cut to billionaires and corporations. don't boo. i'm going to break you of this habit. and the reason some people think

, i remember that economy when he came and was pretty good. yeah, it was pretty good. because it was my economy! [cheers and applause] we had had 75 straight months of job growth that i handed over to him. it wasn't something he did. i spent eight years cleaning up the mess that the republicans had left me the last time. so just in case everybody has a hazy memory, he didn't do nothing. except those big tax cuts. now, his other big economic plan now is to slap tariffs on everything, from food to tv's. now, understand what tariffs are.

anything that is made elsewhere and comes here, you slap extra money on top of it. and if other countries are cheating, in some cases it makes sense because you want to have a fair playing field. but what he is proposing is basically a trump sales tax that could cost the average family almost $4000 a year. so, if you are concerned about higher prices, that is not the way to get lower prices. that's going to come out of your pockets. you think prices are high now? donald trump's message basically is, you ain't seen nothin' yet. all right, so as far as you can tell, that's his plan, because it's not written down anywhere. when it comes to health care, you heard it in the debate. donald trump has got one answer.

ending the affordable care act that 45 million people rely on. the other day his running mate, j.d. vance, had -- [booing] [laughter] you gotta vote. the other day his running mate had the nerve to say donald trump salvaged the affordable care act. [laughter] i mean, donald trump spent his entire presidency trying to tear it down. and by the way, he couldn't even do that right. and now, eight years after he was elected, when he was asked about what he was gonna do, he says he's got concepts of a plan

for how he'd replace it. now, i want y'all to think about this for a second. let's say your boss gives you an assignment, a project. he says, i need this on friday. friday comes around and he says, so, did you finish that project i asked for? you say, well, i actually haven't started, but i have a concept of a plan. or you could try it at home. uh, honey, did you do the dishes? i have a concept of a plan to do the dishes. how's that gonna go over? if it wouldn't work for you, why in the heck should work for the president of the united states? but the good news is, kamala

harris, she doesn't have concepts for a plan. she has an actual plan to make your life better. [cheers and applause] to bring down the cost of things like groceries, she will go after corporations that are jacking up prices. just like she went after big banks and for-profit colleges when she was attorney general in california. and believe me, when she does, nobody is going to want to stand in her way. i remember after the whole mortgage crisis, kamala pushed me and my administration harder than any other attorney general in the country to make sure homeowners got a fair settlement. it did not matter that she was pushing a democratic administration. she was not going to let anybody stop her from winning as much relief as possible for the

families who deserved it. and because of the work that she did, those families got billions more than they would have otherwise got. that is the kind of president kamala harris will be. to lower housing costs, kamala will cut red tape and work with governors like josh shapiro, as well as the private sector, to build three million new homes. and she will give first-time homebuyers up to $25,000 to help with a down payment. plans, concrete plans. and for a lot of folks, that could be the difference between watching their dreams pass them by, and finally owning a place of their own. to lower health care costs, kamala already worked with joe biden to take on the drug

companies and bring down the cost of insulin, and hearing aids, and more than 50 prescription drugs. and as president, she will never stop working to limit out of pocket costs and protect your care. that is who kamala is. she's got a track record of doing it. and here's a big one. instead of giving more tax breaks to billionaires and raising prices on working families, kamala will give a tax cut to 100 million middle class and working people here in america. so, if you are a new parent, you can qualify for a $6,000 tax credit during the first year of your child's life. because, i don't have to tell a lot of you, raising kids is hard. and she wants to make it easier

to afford stuff like a crib, or a car seat, or diapers. i remember buying diapers. i remember the first time i went into the store, right after melia was born. i was like, what? that's how much diapers cost? i remember changing diapers. you think donald trump ever changed a diaper? [laughs] i almost said that, but i decided i shouldn't say it. [laughter] if you are starting a small business, kamala harris will give you a $50,000 tax credit to

help you get it off the ground. that's who kamala harris is. that's what she stands for. so with kamala, you've got actual plans. trump, concepts of a plan. now, if you challenge trump to elaborate and enumerate his concepts, he will fall back on one answer. j.d. vance does the same thing. doesn't matter what the issue is, housing, health care, education, paying the bills. their only answer is to blame immigrants. they want you to believe that if you let donald trump round up whoever he wants, by the way, and ship them out, all your

problems will be solved. now, we've got real issues at the border. we are a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants. we have to make sure it is fair for communities at the border that can be overrun. we have got to actually solve a problem. but when i hear donald trump talking, i've got one question. as i recall, donald trump was president for four years. and if rounding up and deporting millions of desperate people, and building the beautiful wall, didn't matter whether some of those folks you rounded up were women and children. if that's the answer to everything, then, why didn't you solve the problem? why were the number of immigrants basically the same when you left office as when you took office? i'll tell you why.

because he didn't have a real plan. he had talking points. he had concepts of a plan. and the plan was mean and ugly. and it was designed to enhance his politics and make people angry, not to solve the problem. you know what would actually help bring order to the border and fix our immigration system? the bipartisan deal that kamala harris supported, even though it was written by one of the most conservative republicans in congress. the same bill that donald trump tanked on purpose. because he thinks pure mongering is -- fear mongering is how he's going to win this election. he told republicans, even the ones who had originally supported it, don't vote for it.

because he doesn't want the problem solved. we don't need a president who will make problems worse just to make his own political circumstances better. we need a president who actually cares about solving problems, and making your life better, and that's what kamala harris will do! [cheers and applause] and to help her do it, she will need a senate full of serious public servants like bob casey. i'm going to talk about this man just for a second. i've known bob for almost 20 years. i've watched his daughters grow up. i know his brothers and cousins.

and let me tell you, there are a lot of brothers and cousins. and i can tell you that no one is more humble and more honest and more rooted in his community and has more integrity than bob casey. [cheers and applause] you know, in washington, folks make a distinction between workhorses and show horses. and bob casey, he's not a show pony. all the guy cares about is doing the job and looking after you, the people he was elected to serve. that's the kind of person we need to send back to washington. that's the kind of person who's

going to help kamala get stuff done. folks who share our values and will do what they can to move this country forward rather than backward. that's who bob casey is. [cheers and applause] now, one of those values is freedom. and during election time, there are a lot of flags and there's a lot of talk about freedom. so let me talk about that for a second. because i don't think we've ever had an election with candidates who understand freedom more differently. for donald trump and his cronies, freedom means that the powerful can do whatever they please.

fire workers for trying to organize a union. dodge paying their fair share of taxes. try to throw out your votes when they lose an election. control what women can and can't do with their bodies. in other words, for trump, freedom is getting away with stuff. it's like he said in the middle of the pandemic. i don't take any responsibility at all. people were dying. i don't take any responsibility at all. not sure any other president has ever uttered that statement. we have a broader idea of freedom. we believe in the freedom to provide for our families if we are willing to work.

the freedom to breathe clean air and drink clean water and send our kids to school without worrying if they come home. we believe that true freedom gives each of us the right to make decisions about our own life. how we worship. who we marry. what our family looks like. [cheers and applause] and real freedom also means that we're gonna disagree on how each of us should live our lives. and we have to respect other people's views on these issues. you know, i've always said there are good people of conscience on both sides of the abortion divide.

i respect anyone whose faith tells them that it isn't something they support. but if we believe in freedom, then we should at least agree that such a deeply personal decision should be made by the woman whose body is involved and not by politicians. [cheers and applause] it has been fascinating to watch donald trump tie himself into a pretzel on this issue. i mean, when he ran for president the first time, he said he would support punishing women who got an abortion. that's what he said. thank you. now, a couple weeks ago, what

did he say? peace said, don't worry -- he said, don't worry, women. i'll be your protector. i'll tell you how he protected you. he hand-picked three of the supreme court justices who overturned roe v. wade, went out there and bragged about it, and now there are trump abortion bands in 20 states, many of them with no exception for rape or incest. and when he's asked about it, he says, well, everybody wanted it this way. really? he thinks women wanted to have to drive hundreds of miles to find a doctor who could help them? does he think doctors want to choose between letting a woman die or going to jail for giving her the lifesaving care that she needs? that is not something people chose! now, donald trump may be confused about that issue. but let's not be confused.

let's be clear about what's at stake here. if you send bob casey back to the senate, he will vote to restore reproductive freedom that women had for nearly 50 years. and if congress passes that bill, kamala harris will sign it into law. [cheers and applause] because they understand. freedom is about being able to make the right choice for ourselves and our families. it's about recognizing that other people have the freedom to make their own choices even if they are different from ours. and it's an example of how, at the end of the day, this election isn't just about policies.

it's about values. it's about who we are and how we treat each other. and the example we want to set for our children and for their children. and it's about character. you know, some of you know that when i was growing up, i didn't have a father in the house. but i did have plenty of people around me. stepfather, grandparents, teachers, coaches. and most of all, my mom. who taught me the difference between right and wrong. who showed me what it meant to have integrity, and to be honest, and to be responsible,

and to work hard, and to treat other people like we wanted them to treat us. [applause] and i had a bunch of role models out there who helped raise me to become a man. and i made mistakes, and sometimes i didn't live up to those values i was taught the way that i should had. but i was checked and i was corrected, and i internalized those values, and i tried to live up to them. and i suspect most of you grew up the same way. and that process of trying to live out your best self. trying to live out your values,

that doesn't stop after the age of 20 or 21. that keeps going, and as i got older i continued to benefit from friends like bob casey, and josh shapiro, and others who would reinforce those values. and who i did not want to disappoint. and obviously my wife. [cheers and applause] and my daughter's. s, who, you know, they are watching. i want to make sure that i don't disappoint them, and that i am passing on these values to them. here in pittsburgh, i'm thinking about another example of somebody who was a dear friend of mine who has passed away now, dan rubin. you know, here was a guy who won

six super bowls, eight afc championships, had enormous wealth and power. but i remember walking around, i guess it was heinz field by that time -- i am old enough to remember three rivers stadium, now i know it is something else. but dan knew the name of every single person in the steelers organization. we passed by a custodian and he would say, hey jimmy, how 'ya doin', how's the family? paul the office staff, he cared -- all the office staff, he cared about them. he used his influence to get more black and brown coaches hired in the nfl. he gave back to his community. he was known for his integrity. he helped support the peace process in northern ireland. became my ambassador to ireland and continued to help encourage

people who were so far apart to come together. he had character. that's what i think about so much these days. because it's so different from what we see out of the republican nominee. it's been one of the most disturbing aspects of this election season, about trump's rise in politics. is how we seem to have set aside the values that people like dan stood for, that bob stood for, that i was taught. those didn't used to be republican or democratic values. it used to be we would have arguments about tax policy or foreign policy. but we didn't have arguments

about whether you should tell the truth or not. we didn't make excuses for people who just violated basic norms, and treating people fairly and with respect. just last week, i talked about this. we had one of the deadliest hurricanes in american history. the beautiful town of asheville, north carolina, one of my favorite places in the country. spent time there, amazing people. devastated. hundreds of people killed. and president biden and vice president harris were down there meeting with local officials and families, asking how they could help. and donald trump at a rally just

started making up stories about the biden administration withholding aid from republican areas, and siphoning off aid to give to undocumented immigrants. just made the stuff up. everybody knew it wasn't true. even local republicans said it was not true. and now the people of florida are dealing with another devastating storm. and i want you to watch what happens over the next few days, just like the last time. you are going to have leaders who try to help, and then you have a guy who will just lie about it to score political points. and this has consequences. because people are afraid and they have lost everything and now they are trying to figure out how do i apply for help. and some of them may be discouraged from getting the help they need. the idea of intentionally trying

to deceive people in their most desperate and vulnerable moments. and my question is, when did that become ok? i'm not looking for applause right now. i want to ask republicans out there. you know, people who are conservative, who didn't vote for me, who didn't agree with me. i had friends who disagreed with me on every issue. when did that become ok? why would we go along with that? i mean if your coworkers acted like that, they wouldn't be your coworkers very long. you were in business and someone you are doing business with just outright lies and manipulates,

you stop doing business with them. even if you had a family member who acted like that, you might still love them but you tell them, you've got a problem. and you would not put them in charge of anything. and yet when donald trump lies or cheats, or shows utter disregard for our constitution, when he calls pow's losers, or fellow citizens vermin, people make excuses for it. they think it's ok. they think, well, he's owning the libs. he's really sticking it to 'em. it's ok, as long as our side wins. and by the way, i'm sorry, gentlemen. i noticed this especially with some men who seem to think trump

's behavior of bullying and of putting people down is a sign of strength. and i am here to tell you, that is not what real strength is. it never has been. [applause] real strength is about working hard and carrying a heavy load without complaining. real strength is about taking responsibility for your actions and telling the truth, even when it's inconvenient. real strength is about helping people who need it and standing up for those who can't always stand up for themselves. that is what we should want for our daughters and for our sons. that is what i want to see in a president of the united states of america! [cheers and applause]

and the good news is that you have candidates to vote for in this election that demonstrate that kind of character. who know what real strength looks like. who will set a good example and do the right thing and leave this country better than they found it. so, pennsylvania, that is a choice in this election. it's not just about policies that are on the ballot. it's about values, and it is about character. so whether this election is making you feel excited or scared or hopeful or frustrated or anything in between, do not just sit back and hope for the best. get off your couch and vote! put down your phone and vote! grab your friends and family and vote! vote for kamala harris as the

next president of the united states! vote for tim walz as a next vice president of the united states! vote for bob casey, and this whole incredible pennsylvania democratic ticket! help your friends and family members and neighbors and coworkers do the same. because if enough of us make our voices heard, we will leave no doubt about the election outcome. we'll leave no doubt about who we are and what america stands for. and together, we'll keep building a country that's more fair and more equal and more just and more free. that is our task. that is our responsibility. let's go do it! thank you, pittsburgh.

minnesota governor tim walz will be in michigan. ♪ [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2024] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] ♪ [♪ "land of hope and dreams" by

bruce springsteen ♪]

latino voters. live coverage on c-span. mr. trump: thank you very much. >> are you ready? mr. trump: i'm ready. >> let's do this. mr. trump: let's go. >> welcome to today's roundtable discussion with our host building america's future. this is their 50th stop on america's future tour.

my name is myra flores. i'm the first mexican born congress weapon of mass destruction -- congresswoman coming to congress in 2022 and i'm here to models -- moderate this. we were created to inform and empower americans to take ownership to our countries the poles direction -- policy direction and demands or government enact policy reforms to improve the lives of americans. we need it make america's future great again. today we are joined by some very special guests, president donald trump.

mr. trump: thank you. thank you, thank you. thank you, everybody. >> army captain sam brown, u.s. senate candidate state of nevada. we are joined by six hispanic americans from this community who have been impacted by the biden-harris policies. they are here to show their situations and how this administration has negatively

impacted their lives and stopped them from moving forward. and we are here to change that. lydia dominguez, a mother, author, air force veteran. we have brian osua, a husband, father of five, proud teamster local 631 member. we have also linda forno. we have ramos jones.

and we have rafael. we know president trump built one of the strong he was economies ever lifting all americans especially the hispanic community. after his leadership the hispanic community saw a record low employment and poverty. as part of the plan to help us recover from the disastrous economy from the biden administration, president trump has pledged to eliminate taxes on tips so americans can keep more money in their pockets. i want to share my father's sorry story -- story. back in 2016 he was here and in 2020 he voted for president

trump because under his administration his trucking company was thriving. he saw that his policies empowered his company. he said even though i still don't agree with him on everything, i love his policies. and i will be voting for him in 2020. but he went from being him in 2016 and voting in 2020 and now he is all in for president trump. i know that it is not just my father. hispanic americans have seen what the beside administration has done to their lives. we all have less money. we want to take or children it a vacation, and that is what president trump will do when we gets him re-elected in november.

and now, speaking mr. trump: before we get it our important discussion i will be your moderator. i would like to introduce a great american, a leader with a spine of steel and heart of gold. please join me in welcoming bob. >> thank you, myra. you are so important for texas. i have been down with you a couple times. i remember you said your father said you convinced him to vote your way with god, family, work, freedom. you asked him why did you vote conservative republican. my party had abandoned me. and they abandoned many latinos. our future is at stake.

i want to also recognize captain sam brown, who at a young age -- these are people who put their lives on line. when i see service men i say not just thank you for your service, thank you for our freedom. we have freedom that we take for granted. we don't get it back we are going to lose this country. that is why we are sitting next to the greatest president of our time, donald j. trump. >> the song goes those were the days my friend. i thought they would never ends. we took advance for ever and a day. that is where we were understood president trump. i call them days that were so

good. i call the days we are in today, how bad has it gotten. it has gotten bad. under president trump, our economy was cruising. the best economy ever. prosperity. we had a safe world, no wars, we had no inflation, virtually no inflation. we had freedom. under president trump our real average weekly wages were up 8.4%. understood this administration it is down 3.4. we cannot keep up with the cost of this administration that is hammering not only the hispanic community, the african-american community, all communities.

the border was secure. illegal immigration was at a minimum. yesterday the c.p.i. index came out and higher than expected at 2.4%. and this is on top of year after year we have had over the years 5.4% inflation on top of historic inflation. overall prices are up 20.5% but let me tell you, i will steal a phrase from mr. president -- that is fake noise. goya is up more than 50%. we do a lot of canning, come to brookshier, texas, we will show you how we can at 2,000 cans a minute. cans wentz -- went up 64%. ever since the harris biden war

on fossil fuels that was the greatest scam pulling out of afghanistan. we showed so much weakness. they invaded ukraine. ukraine is a breadbasket for europe and northern africa. they have 30% of the world wheat, 20% of corn 50% of fertilizer. it trebled the cost -- tripled the cost of fertilizer. ends -- under kamala real average wages -- i don't say that to get a buzz or as an insult. it is reality. she is bad for this country. she is bad for the latinos. real average wages were down 3.4% and wages have been up.

our wages in warehousing and distributioning have almost doubled but they are not keeping up with the cost of this administration, the burden they put on our society. the working class, the middle class, hispanic and black and african-american population have been hammered, exploited and used and abused. it has cost the middle class $2.4 trillion since march of 2022. the average middle class who is hold cost $33,000 in real wealth and you need a six figure salary in less than half of the country to buy a home. that feels -- that was day one. we can go on and on about the

economy. but for me the biggest issue understood this administration, which i consider evil and i will tell you why -- is the hispanic and african-american communities being exploited, used and abused under the greatest slavery under the history of the world. my friend ben carson also a trend of the president -- friend of the president said there are more slaves in the world today than the history of the world because the only industry that has flourished over the last for years is human trafficking and drugs. we are bringing in people, we are actively bringing in people into this countries for exploitation, millions of people. last year on april 26, 2023,

someone testified that the u.s. as a 34eu8dz -- middle man in the trafficking of children. there were 85,000 children lost -- they were sold and we are the middle man. as kara lee said, recently the inspector general of hhs, health and human services mr. trump: latinos abusing -- the latinos are the biggest target of trafficking and women are 70% of people trafficked. children are 25%. imagine you have a woman taking care of our border abusing these children. the inspector general says that 325,000 children are missing. again they are not missing. they have been sold. this is pure evil. this is spiritual war.

four years ago on july 9, 2020, president trump invited me to be on the white house commission for hispanic prosperity. this administration fired me. i guess they don't believe in prosperity for hispanics. but i said there were blessings. it came on my lips from the holy spirit and i got in a heap of triple, a boycott. but the president supported me. i guess being call for a boycott but you can't support a company. but he supported us and we did so well, we were major employer of the month for improving. as a latino i'm probably going over the three minutes. i'm sorry, myra. god placed his hands, his hands

were placed on donald j. trump. he continues to and he will not let go. look at july 13 at 1kwr 11 in the -- 6:11 put on the armor of tkpwotdz. god's hands is on president trump. he is going to bring us through to prosperity to safety and he is going to leads closer to god and make america great again. it is my highest honor -- you might know this fellow sitting next to me, the former, current and future president of the united states. donald trump. thank you. mr. trump: thank you both and thank you everybody. would you like to take over?

would some people like to speak first? >> no, everyone is ready to hear from you. mr. trump: thank you very much and i have to say with bob we became good friends. i didn't know almost before the white house but i got to know him and he represented hispanics, a lot of people, a lot of people having to do with manufacturing, business. he is great businessman and he had a very interesting situation the radical left put pressure on him not to be involved with us meaning republicans or conservatives, people with common sense. we are essentially the party of common sense which becomes a better term as time goes by with men playing in women sports and people coming two the countrien vetted and up checked. but we are the party of common

sense. so, bob, he has a great company. but they were putting a lot of pressure and i felt very badly for him because they were hitting him hard. they were trying to, tort him amount we -- extort him and he fought very hard. and then a strange thing happened. his numbers went through the roof. he was selling much more food instead of less food. they play that game. it is probably not legal but they go after businesses and not everybody is like bob where they are in a position to fight. but his company went absolutely through the roof because of his tremendous support. we have far more support than the other side. really, the term, make america great again, we are the party of wanting to make america great again. right now we have a nation in

decline. we are sadly a declining nation an who would have -- and who would have thought we would have to say that. but if you look at or borders they are horrible. i probably won in 2016 because of the border. i fixed it very quickly and turned over a great border and they destroyed it. from the moment my favorite chart feels -- was a chart on immigration and it was the lowest immigration for ever in recorded history and that feels my last day in office and it went up to the moon and itwas very sad to see it but we will do it again. this is many times worse than in 2016. in 2016 we had something within

reason. we didn't have people with no talent, to brain power, people with -- that maybe hate our country in a certain way because why would they want prisoners, gang members, drug dealers, why would they want murders, 13,099 murderers -- why would they want those people in our countries. usually when bob or i or some of the good business people around the table and in the audience -- i know we have a couple date ones, wesley hunt a great congressman by the way, he is a great congressman -- but we always say we want to know what the other side is all about. this is one of the times you say what are they doing, where do we benefit and you look at it and you say they are not smart but they are smart, they are cunning and a lot of them are evil.

but you say that maybe they hate our country. i believe they could be some of that because when you allow drug hrrdz to come into our country, allow the people they are allowing -- and empty -- they are empties prisons all over the world, this is no longer south america. this is the entire world from africa they come, from asia they come, the middle east, south america, yes. but it is not exclusively south america. the congo, we have a lot of people coming in from the congo in africa. it is incredible. but you say why are they doing it. it has to be evil intention. then you realize so many other things like transgender operations where prisoners, people that are being held as prisoners, if they request transgender operation they get

it. who would believe this is possible. and she was one of them. kamala -- we don't have to talk about joe because he was overthrown. first time. we call it a coup. people say what is a coup. the coup is you were overthrown. i believe he likes me more than kamala but what do i know? how would i know that. but i think he likes me a little bit about this much more than her. but they are having a lot of fighting going on and they answered a question the other day on one of these ridiculous shows and they said well, what would you have done differently she complains what she is going to do, i say why didn't she do it. you just sit back why didn't you do it? you had almost four years to do it. but she is worse than biden, i'm telling you.

he is more intelligent than her. can you believe this? ok? it is not that i'm a fan but i think what happened to him is terrible. he had 14 million votes, she came in last because she feels the first one -- she was the first within to drop out. there were 22 and she dropped out. it is a terrible thing. you talk about a threat to democracy. that is a threat to democracy. but the biggest threat it democracy is incompetence and we have incompetent people leading our country and problems other than borders. the biggest problem is probably the possibility of world war roam three. and that would be a war lake -- like no other with the weapons we have we have people leading us that are not the right people. we had no wars. i finished off isis. we have the best economy ever.

we did great. and for the hispanic americans, that is why we are here, i want to say household income for hispanic americans -- i asked them give me the basic -- it reaching all-time high. your household income was the highest it ever was. the hispanic american poverty reached the lowest rate ever. the lowest rate of poverty, the highest rate of income. that's not bad. you almost don't have to say anything more. the household wealth of the median hispanic family grew by 65%. think of that one. homeownership among hispanic americans reached the highest level ever by far. and we cut taxes and regulations for hispanic owned small businesses and people. we did this for everybody and everybody did better, but hispanic americans did right at the top. let me tell you what is happening at the border because

it is affecting you probably more than anybody else. african-americans, hispanic americans. people are pouring in and taking your jobs. your jobs are being taken and that is because of kamala and biden. in this case, her because he put her in charge of the border, and then it was 4:00 and he went home and went to sleep. now, she says she was not the border czar . they come out with different excuses because there's no excuse. we have the worst border in the history of the world. there's never been a border in the history of the world like this. because they had no border like this, because they fight them off with sticks and stones if they had to. this is the worst ever in the history of the world. and we have the best never in this country's history and we had a strong border. we had great people. one of my advisors, brandon judd

was unbelievable. we have people today that are great. the amazing thing, they want to do their job. it is easier for them not to do their job, i assume, but they want to do the job. but, you heard the numbers from -- think of that, family income, median, 65% increase. whoever heard of a number like that? but it is being taken away from you because of the border. people will come in and take your job. that's what's happening. if you look at the numbers today, the numbers are way down from where they were. for the african-american community, it is actually a step even worse. i just want to let you know that's the way it is. she caused tremendous inflation. $29,000 per family. kamala launched a massive irs initiative to take more tip money away. you know, no tax on tips?

she goes out a few weeks later, maybe a few month later and said i have a surprise for you, no tax on tips. we sent her a maga cap. she won't be able to do it, just like they were unable to fulfill for four years, they said they would cut the debt on colleges and schools and all of this. we will cut the debt, student loans. it failed. all that work, all that talk, it was all for nothing. it failed. a lot of people had hopes and it failed because they don't get done what they are supposed to get done. they get done nothing good for the country. the only thing they are successful at is wasting money on the green new scam. you know the number, bob, the actual number is $93 trillion. this was done by aoc plus three. i said, oh, did you study the

environment? no. they didn't even study it. they want to do things like no more windows in buildings. i have some wonderful plans for this country. honestly, they are crazy and really hurting our country badly. i just want to say it has been an honor. i've had such great support from the hispanic community and from the black community. [applause] the highest level ever. and there are those that say that it is breaking the 50% mark which is really incredible. 10 years ago, six years ago, even when i ran when i first ran, you did not know me very well and you got to know me well. the second, we did great in 2020. we did better in 2020 than 2016. we got millions more votes. but we did very well with the

hispanics, and now we are doing record numbers. i think we will have a tremendous election. we will have an election like no other. i think this will be the biggest and most important election in the history of the country. and, a big beneficiary will be the people in this room, they've been so great. hispanic people have tremendous -- they said you cannot generalize, but i think you can -- they have wonderful entrepreneurship. you have such energy. just ease up a little bit, ok? ease up. you have great ambition, great energy. very smart and you really do. it is like natural entrepreneurs. that is why the small businesses in the country, largely, the number of hispanic americans operating small businesses and big businesses, too, running them for stockholders.

it is an incredible group of people. it is an honor to have you on my side. we are getting numbers of hispanic americans that no one ever thought possible. and, we are up and all of the polls. it looks like we are leading in just about everywhere. i think all of the swing states, it came out this morning, we are leading all the swing states. and part of that is she can't answer questions. she does not know what the hell she's doing. we had that for years ago and had that for the last four years, we cannot do that anymore. we are not going to survive as a country. we are in very dangerous shape. very bad shape as a country. you look at all the things that are happening that are so bad. it's just something we cannot take. we are going to be with you. you've been with me. get out and vote. again, november 5, i believe, will go down as may be the most important day, i hope, right?

right, mr. congressman? i hope it will because it will show what we do, but it will be the most important day in the history of the country. i said that in 2016 and i meant it, but this blows it away because 2016, we have problems but not this kind of a problem. we have a problem of survival of our country because we are run by very stupid and probably evil people, and we cannot have it. thank you very much. bob. i hope that is a positive message. is that a positive message? [applause] thank you very much. >> thank you, mr. president. let's make it clear to the hispanic community that the biden and harris administration have killed our economy, destroyed our border. they have destroyed everything good that we had in our country. they have not destroyed us. and we are going to give president trump the biggest win in november.

hispanics are. mr. president is going to have the biggest support any republican president has ever had from us. i truly believe that. but, what's most important for us is our values. and kamala harris is destroying our values of family, of faith, and if we want those values to live in our children and the second-generation, it's important that we instill those values, but that we also elect those that represent our values and that is president donald trump. i think it is important that we also give an opportunity to captain sam brown to introduce himself. this race is very important for your state. so, i want to give him an opportunity to say a few words.

thank you for being here. thank you for making time out of your day to be here, but also, thank you for running. i know it is a huge sacrifice. thank you for everything you've done for our country. i would not be here if it wasn't for men and women like you that serve in our country. thank you. >> thank you, congresswoman. thank you, president trump for being here, for demonstrating to the world just how important nevada is, how important the hispanic voters are. how important this community is. we are so grateful you are with us today. fmr. pres. trump: thank you very much. >> success is not promised in life. hardship is something that none of us can avoid. i want to talk to you a little bit about the american dream. most of you know me as a veteran, someone who put on the uniform, served and sacrificed for this country, and i was

happy to do that. but, like so many of us in this room, i have also got a story about pursuing the american dream. after i recovered and i had to figure out who i was outside of that uniform, i went back to school. i got an education around business. and just because you do those right things, you check those boxes, does not mean you are going to find that success. so, in 2016, when president trump was elected and i was happy to be a proud president trump supporter, over those next couple of years, the optimism of seeing what he was doing for our country, lowering our energy costs, lowering unemployment, cutting taxes. we saw the border secured. we saw optimism, a hope for the american dream was something that we could all grab onto.

it was at that time that i decided my next step in the american dream as a husband and father with three school-age children was to start my own business. but, again, for those business owners out here in this room, that is not always easy. my journey started working in a fulfillment center. when i walked in here today and saw the racks up against the wall and the cardboard boxes, i felt like it almost feels like home. because for six months as i was starting my business, the business that provided pharmaceutical services to veterans when the va hospital was not able to, i worked in a fulfillment center. i packed up those boxes. i loaded them onto semi-truck trailers. i did that for 10 hour shifts four days a week, and i went home at night, had meals with my family and went to work on my business plan. i was eventually able to make that full transition to being a

successful small business owner. that is so important to all of us as americans. all of us that we have the opportunity. again, it is not a promise that we have success, but an opportunity. and, president trump, as our president and me being a small business owner while he was president, i was so compelled to fight for his reelection in 2020 that i did put aside some family time. when i got done taking care of my affairs, my oldest son and i would go out and knock on doors for president trump. four years ago, i was a happy volunteer. i see people out here in the crowd today who were volunteers. beware, you might find yourself one day running for united states senate, too. but, it was so worth fighting for what president trump did for us. the way that he led for us. he could not guarantee us success, but he could create a pathway for it.

we saw him cut taxes. we saw him lower those energy costs. we saw optimism in our community. and what we have now is a story of all the wrong things going up and the right things going down. our unemployment rate in nevada is the second highest in the nation. our housing costs are off the chart. the interest rates have gone so high that if i had to buy my home today that i bought six years ago, i could not afford it. i know a lot of you are in that same position. we have a number of people coming across this border illegally has gone through the roof. criminals that have come across this border, including those that committed murders, over 13,000. what's been going down? our take-home pay. the number of kids who actually can play sports as i go through the community. i've got parents saying we

cannot afford to have our kids play sports. there's teachers who told me they cannot even send kids home with homework on paper because they cannot afford the ink and paper to send the kids home to continue their education at home. the wrong things are going down. but, while jacky rosen has been our senator, while she's voted 98% of the time with biden and harris, her net worth has gone up 61%. can you imagine if your network had gone up 61% under the policies of this administration? let me tell you, there's people in your life that challenge you to be the best version of yourself. there's a couple in this room today, congressman wesley hunt right here, an upperclassman of mine at west point. you may have given me a hard time he or there, but he

challenged me to be the best version of myself. to become the leader i was able to grow into being. i see pastor jimmy morales over here as well. he has challenged me to be the best version of myself. throwing me behind the pulpit to give an entire sermon to his church one day. president trump, you challenge us all to be the best version of ourselves. you -- president trump, i have seen courage under fire. i have had to lead troops into the heart of fire. i have have survived the very fire itself. i found hope, frankly, when i had lost the will to live when someone came running to me and screamed out, sir, i've got you. there was nothing i could do for myself at that moment. but, that action, it was not just words, it was action that

saved my life. and, president trump, you represent not just words, but action to save the lives and provide help for so many today. [applause] one last thing to the women here today and who are seeing this at home, like my wife. like the wonderful first lady. like so many of you moms and grandmas and sisters here. you will determine the outcome of this election. my wife challenged me to run. she said i know the man you are. president trump need you to back him up in the senate. you women here today, you will determine this election, so let your voice be heard. get out there. get your family to vote. get your children to vote. let's provide president trump the backup he needs. >> thank you, captain brown.

well, we are all here to hear from these six great hispanic americans and to hear from their stories. i would like lydia dominguez to share your story with us. thank you for being here. [applause] >> thank you to america's future tour for having me here. thank you, mr. president. it is a true honor to share my story. my story echoes of so many latinos around the nation. i was born in mexico and raised as an infant in the united states. and my mom is a high school graduate, my dad made it to the sixth grade. he was a construction worker. when i was 12, he passed away from cancer because of all the chemicals he had been exposed to. at the age of 14, i probably became an american citizen.

and, you know, i continued -- at the age of 16 and 19, i had both of my kids. they are right there in the stadium, wave. i'm so proud of them. i had both my boys at 16 and 19. so, i decided to join the air force. i joined proudly because i had grown up with a sense of service and sense of wanting to do more in my country. under your administration, i was able to afford a home. i was able to buy my first home and save money. it was the first time i've been able to get ahead and feeling like i'd always been behind, your administration was at the point i was able to get ahead. under the biden administration, i was forced to take the covid-19 vaccine and i refused as a religious accommodation. and i was honorably discharged.

and with that, most of my savings dwindled under the biden-harris economy. and i had found myself having to work two jobs. having to do rideshare and graphic designing to make ends meet at that point. i was raised in a democratic household. my values remain consistent. mr. president, you were the first republican president i voted for in 2016. i had never seen anyone articulate the way you did how great this country is and how much it is worth fighting for. you saw what it really was and you want to protect it. despite the economic struggles after leaving the air force, i decided to remain committed to my commitment of service and i

am running for clark county school board. and, my story echoes so many other hispanics. my mom had said we are democrat because we are poor and the republicans are rich. we are not rich, so we are democrat. even at a young age, i thought, but i want to be rich someday. how do i get there? one of the things that resonates, that a lot of latinos experience as well as i did, and i will say it in spanish, my grandma would say -- [speaking spanish] she said they can always take away your car, they can take away the money in your bank account, they can take away your

house, but they can never take away what's in your mind, so education was so important to me. i hold that with my children. i hold that in my community in service. mr. president, i support you 100% and i know my latino community, my latino family supports you. we have been struggling so hard under this biden economy. we are under a democratic diet right now and i am tired of being on that diet. fmr. pres. trump: thank you very much. great job. thank you. congratulations. >> thank you for sharing your story. mr. president, kamala harris and the democrat party do not believe in parental rights. what do you say to parents like lydia, their concerns? fmr. pres. trump: you look at the school boards, what's happening. they are being treated like terrorists. i've never seen anything like it. who would think that when i make speeches, if you go back 10

years, you would never even think -- you say i stand for parental rights. who would say you have to say that? bob, when -- a major portion of what you have to do, we will stick up for the parents. they can come and take your child and do things to your child that nobody can believe they are allowed to do. we are for parental rights. we will get those parental rights back stronger than ever before. >> thank you, mr. president. we have another amazing story coming from brian. please share with us your story. >> first of all, i would just like to share how grateful i am to be here. it is such an honor to be sitting here at the same table with president trump. fmr. pres. trump: thank you. >> i just want to start off by saying that i am just a blue-collar, hard-working man.

follower of jesus christ. what's important to me is your proposal in the no tax on overtime. i work in a trade industry in las vegas. i'm a union steward. we work very long hours. most of the time, our overtime hours are past our regular hours. your proposal would help us out tremendously, along with other hard-working citizens. when you were in office, me and my wife had a pretty nice savings account, but with this current administration, my savings have been depleted. my wife and i have noticed we used to spend on groceries for a family of six the same amount that we spent on the two of us. we are empty-nesters. we are proud of all of our adult children. all of our children have roommates. they're unable to afford renting

on their own, not to mention buying a home. i remember when you were in office, the economy was booming. i knew a lot of people that were able to come out from underneath the government's thumb. i was able to introduce my friends to a real estate agent and they were able to achieve the american dream, they were able to buy a home. life was good when you were in office. you didn't hear people yelling defund the police. we had safe communities, the country was safe. when you were in office, you showed your strength and achieved peace through strength with other countries. your leadership trickled down into our communities and we respected authority and one another. we need secure borders. without borders, you have no country. with the flood of illegal immigrants, this admin attrition has no plan with no structure. with no structure, you are bound to have chaos and that makes for

a perfect plan to distract the american public and change the world into the world we are living in today. these are the conversations we talk about at work. these are real people. i work with a lot of people of different nationalities and backgrounds. i respect everyone's opinion, but i am telling you, the majority of all the people that i talked to want you back in office. [applause] as common folk just want peace, and we don't want to send billions of dollars abroad. we want america to come first. we want secure borders, safe cities, safety for our children. a better economy and a better president than the one we've had to tolerate for the last four years. i believe in divine intervention.

and i believe god protected you that day of that attempted assassination. and i truly do believe the lord is not finished with you yet. you have a purpose. promises made, promises kept. i went to so many rallies of yours and i can still hear you saying that. i remember you keeping your word. we love you, mr. trump. keep doing what you do best and run this country the way this country needs to be led. [applause] fmr. pres. trump: thank you, brian. >> you have an incredible story. thank you for sharing. mr. president, you have gotten a lot of support from unions, from teamsters like brian. why do you think that is? fmr. pres. trump: well, we know what's going to happen. unions are going to be very affected by all these people coming in and we have no idea who they are. we know nothing about them.

they are unvented, unchecked and they are by the millions. they will affect your teamsters. the teamsters, as you know, the rank-and-file voted last week nationally -- and i know you did locally, and i appreciate it -- i respect the teamsters. i've used teamsters to do a lot of building. concrete, they trucked it in and i never had a problem. we had a tremendous vote. over 60% of the teamsters voted, which was unheard of because it never happened before to a republican. if i were a democrat, it would be 105%. i know how hard you work. i really appreciate your words, brian. you will be very happy. you do have to be careful. i told sean o'brien, the boss and he is great. great man, head of the teamsters. i said you have to be careful because you have people coming in by the millions and many are

not people that are supposed to be in this country and they will be stealing your jobs, taking your jobs. you will have turmoil. tremendous turmoil. it is not fair to the people who have been here and great citizens and works hard. you see it happening already and it is happening right now so we have to be careful. that was beautiful. thank you very much. >> thank you, brian. thank you, mr. president. now, let's hear from our small business owner. [applause] >> well, i'm so honored to be here today. never in my life that i see myself being here amongst any of you guys or having this opportunity. i guess this is what america is. everyone has the opportunity to do something. i come from an immigrant family. back in 1995, my parents came

out to the u.s., landed in utah. i have two brothers. we came here legally, but we overstated and we were able to -- overstay and we were able to make life in the united states. [laughter] it is funny. my parents came out to las vegas back in 1999, so i consider myself from the vegas community. i've been here 25 plus years. life here, did school ask everything and over the years i always had the legal status hanging over my head because you're somewhat limited given what you can accomplish and never let it get to me and i realized i had to move past it and make best of my life but i didn't choose to be here but my parents felt it was a better opportunity for the family and for us as kids so i became to

love being out here in the u.s. went through high school and everything, completed all of my school like i was supposed to and didn't see myself continuing studying or pursuing any sort of career. but i knew deep inside that i could be an entrepreneur. i could break barriers and create something without the help of anyone or, you know? and as i had that on my mind, i continued living life and shortly after high school i met my beautiful why have who's sitting down there, supporting like always. we have two kids. 12 years old and a 5-year-old. and in midst of trump's presidency is when i decided to go with entrepreneurship. build my first business, create more time for my family, better resources, income for my

family. better future. i saw the opportunities as your presidency was on. i wasn't fully supportive when you ran for the first time, you know. i learned to support and really see your path and how you were trying to guide us through a better future. things were great up until covid, i believe is when things started to fall for our family, like it did for everyone. i think it put a stall on our levers in pursuing the dream that we were seeking of having our own business, generating wealth and a greater future for our family so covid shut down the business that we were starting which was in the catering business, food truck. and in the midst of 2020 when things stalled we said we have to continue. we cannot sit back and wait for someone to come save us or help us so we went out and opened up a restaurant in the midst of all

the covid regulations, all the changes that had happened. inflation. things started to change at that point and we battled through. we're not thriving as we should. i think the last four years have been very difficult for small businesses, especially in the food industry. the cost of goods, labor. all of these things that have changed that weren't the same so we've been able to still stay afloat, pushing to try to open more locations to generate more revenue, to be able to still grow. but there's obviously limitations to what we can do, what's in our hands, our control. one things i have to mention, his pan i think soics, they don't give -- hispanics, they don't give up. they find a way. but i'm happy with the

opportunity that trump has begun to run and hopefully get us back on track. i think there's room to make america greater. some of the policies that you're proposing like the taxes on tips, services, things like that. i work jobs where people live off tips. that's the majority of their income and then it gets eaten up by their job because of the taxes and all that stuff. it's money that they've earned and should rightfully go to them so i think this is the beginning of the start for changing a lot that can benefit communities more, can benefit hispanics and not just hispanics but in the general moplation, i think there are many changes that immediate need to be made. we need to get back to the nucleus of our family. our soul of our country should be based on that. the love of our family, love of

our children. then trying to maintain their saintliness, their hole inns as long as we have. that's the future that we can and we can't let ideas, people influence that. you know, they're precious. i believe we need to get back to that. i feel confident that you're on that page, you want that for the nation, you want that for people who have a belief in a higher power, greater god and if they don't, they should also be willing and hopeful for a better future for their kids. everyone should want the best for them so there are many things that i think can be changed and i don't perceive this current administration making those changes or taking us to a better future. i believe you are the best fit for helping us get from and i hope that you can --

[applause] fmr. pres. trump thank you very much. beautiful. very good. thank you very much. that's very nice. >> thank you, elias and i agree with you. i believe that the hispanic values are what's going to save this country. i want to talk about the no tax on tips. i was a server for many years. i understand the struggle of not wanting to report all the tips. [laughter] because we knew that we're going to get taxed. mr. president, are you going to get the no tax on tips signed into law? fmr. pres. trump yeah, i think we will. we had tremendous enthusiasm in congress for it, even on both sides. they said that was a good idea. nobody ever thought of it. i have another one. i was in detroit the other day and i said we're going to have deductibility of interest on car purchases and the place went crazy and top people on wall street. two top people said when did did you ever come up with that

idea? it was something they just felt, we have to bring back our car industry. we have other things even beyond that to bring it back but that was something. we have the ideas with the no tax on tips. i was at my building and a waitress came up and she was complaining about the way they were harassing her and i said on what? she said tips. i said really. really? i never heard of this. she said no, it's terrible. they're actually passing new legislation to graft the people on tips. new stuff. what do you think of the idea of no tax on tips? it seems like very hard money to get for the government and maybe you should be entitled and also, i think, a big thing, it could be for you but it could be for a lot of the people. you work overtime. no tax on overtime and i think that's going to be good for the country. more people are going to work overtime so we have these

things. we'll get them done and approved in congress. i've gotten pretty much everything i've wanted. >> thank you, mr. president. we want to hear from these three hispanic americans as well. we'd like to hear your story as well. >> thank you. it's a really honor for me to be here and it's my third time sharing with you, mr. trump. for now, i want to tell about my story. i'm an immigrant latina who came from nicaragua 16 years oh 16 years ago. i'm raised by two beautiful women, my mother and grandma who taught me values and taught me you have to fight for what you want. you have to fight for your criteria and your opinion and that's why i'm here. when i came to this beautiful country, i did things the right way and have worked really hard raising my three kids. one of my kids was invited to be

part of the panel but he couldn't. he said, mom, it's my dream to neat president trump but if i go and miss work, i'm going to be short on my paycheck. it's how sad our economic situation that we have to work really hard. in my house we have three people working, three salaries and having two jocks in order to support our economy in our house. it's not just me. it's all the community. the hispanics that are facing the same situation. what is frustrating is how democrats always stands for hispanics. that's what they say. we are here for latino people and i ask to everyone, what they done for us? nothing. they have done nothing and that's one of the reasons why the latino community now stands for you, mr. trump.

that's what they are -- supporting you and they want you back. it's not time to regret because many people, they vote for democrats. as i did. but now, i'm standing here and i'm standing for all those who want to be part of your team, who wants to be part of this american dream and believe me, they are waiting for you to hold your hand and they have the faith that you are going to bring america again as we are -- to have it. [applause] fmr. pres. trump thank you very much. >> thank you, linda.linda.fmr. o ahead. >> we would love to hear your story, thank you again for being here. >> thank you, mr. president, it is an honor to be here with you today. i'm a first-generation immigrant

from ecuador. i came here when you were president five years ago. came with nothing, without being able to speak the language and without knowing anybody here and today i'm sitting here with mr. president trump. [applause] cameron, that's my daughter. [applause] when you and mommy used to sleep on that mattress on the floor, i never thought the was going to be possible. this is only possible here in america. [applause] and that is why you have to defend this country until the end. and that's why you have to love

this country unapoll jetically, as i do. there is only one america, do not take it for granted. [applause] the ones that have come from different countries know how bad it can be. how bad it can be if we do not defend our freedom. how bad it can be when they won't assign us. how bad it can be when we lose our rights and when we do not defend our values. values to worked hard by our parents. i'm proud to be part of a community that work hard every day. people of faith, people that in today's economy are suffering. they have to have two or three jobs to meet their needs. we immigrant hispanics have already made the sacrifices by leaving our countries, leaving our families, leaving everything that we know behind.

we have nothing to lose. and we do see this country with a lot of hope. hope that you gave us and that we hope to restore it. we're willing to learn and embrace those opportunities. opportunities because we are survivors. we take risks. we get things done when we, too, have the opportunities but unfortunately opportunities in today's america are lost. in the last four years, they have proved that they want to divide and bully those who don't think like them. they know the power of latinos. and they are only using us for political purposes. in the last four years they have proved that they do not care about us. thank you, mr. president. [applause] >> thank you, edey.

mr. president, really quick, what do you say to those who immigrated here to this country the right way. what do you say to those people that are here in this country? fmr. pres. trump so you have a lot of people that came in and they went through 10, 12 years of work and i think they're being very unfairly treated. they've worked so hard and they're so proud and they love the country. we have people coming in, many people coming in and do a good job and many people shouldn't be on that line because they're dangerous people. we have a lot of dangerous people. we're going to take care -- we understand we want to obstruct borders but we want to have people come into our country legally. it will happen. we'll have a lot of people come in but they have to come in legally. and we have know that. i think everybody knows that [applause]

>> thank you, mr. president. now, would you please share your story with us as well? >> yes, and it's an honor to be here. thank you, mr. president, for doing this and taking the timing out to talk to the hispanic community. i was born in san yawn, puerto rico. have son puerto ricans back there. i moved here with my family. i started my business in 2008, right in the middle of the recession, as they say. we do emissions testing here in town and then we go to the d.m.v. for people that are working or don't have the chance to go because they'reout there providing for their families. i know everybody lovers going to the d.m.v., right? [laughter] but about two months after i started my business i had a detective come in. gun and badge and everything. he said, hey, you know, you can't really do this business. and that was my first

interaction with government as a business owner and that's when i learned if you don't get involved with government, government is going to get involved with you and, you know, a couple of back and forths for a few months and eventually said you know what, you're right. the law doesn't say that you can't do this business so you're able to continue but instead of encouraging innovation, the de fault government position is usually to shut it down so as i continued over the years, i dealt with obstacle after obstacle. policies that weren't business friendly. regulations that didn't make any sense. at one point i had a meeting with some government officials and they said we're going to make this policy change and if you don't like it, change the law so i had to get involved. i got involved with state legislators and it took me a year and four months and eventually we changed the law. [applause] so, i'm not a person who

complains and just stands around, right? i put myselfout there to fight for what's right and i really care about our state and all my fellow small business owners and all my hispanic community and i know from firsthand experience how important it is to have elected officials that understand business and care about encouraging growth and i feel like we have a governor here in governor lombardo who stresses that nevada is open for business. [applause] but the issue is he's going to need help. and today, for me, some parts that are critical to my business are double and trip it will price that be they were four years ago and mr. president, i know you're a businessman. you know how hard that is to see costs double and triple and what that does to your bottom line, to your employees, to your customers. and as an hispanic business

owner, father of four. my family is right over there sitting down. [applause] it's tough right now. it's really tough right now. and what i'm doing is i'm paying attention to the policies and i'm not paying attention to the media hype and i recommend that everybody else do the same. [applause] you know, the issues that really affect us are gas prices, groceries, the cost of supplies because at the end of the day we just want to provide for our families. so, mr. president, i want to know what can be done to -- as an elected official at the federal level to deal with this inefficiency in government, the bureaucracy that small business owners have to deal with on a day-to-day basis? thank you for the opportunity. fmr. pres. trump thank you. it's a great story. the big thing with you is going to be the cost of energy.

very big thing and we're going to get that down by 50% within the first year. more liquid gold, oil and gas. we have more than any other country in the world including saudi arabia, including russia and we don't use it to the extends that we can and the problem is your prices are too high. it's not a question of inflation anymore. they've already done the damage. the damage has been done. you have things that are costing 50, 60, 70% more than they were three years ago and we're going to get your energy costs down by 50% within the first 12 months and when that happens, everything is going to follow it and i think you're going to be in very good shape. very good story, though. very good. thank you. [applause] >> thank you, mr. president. kamala harris is telling hispanic americans that mr. president is against us. clearly he's forus and it's going to take all of us to rise up and speak up.

we will give president trump the biggest win in november but it's going to take all of us to rise up, get out to vote. i want y'all to act like we're 50 points down. we got to get our friends and family out to vote. this is the most important election of our lifetime. the future of our children, the future of our grandchildren is in your hands. i believe in the american dream. not only am i the american dream, so are you. you are the american dream. and the american dream is worth fighting for. but it's going to take all of you to rise up. this isn't just about us here at this table. it's about you as well. you need to take this election very personal because the future of our country is at stake and it's in your hands. so let's give pres. trump, the biggest win in november.

[applause] fmr. pres. trump thank you. everything. november 5. get out and vote. thank you, everybody. thank you. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2024] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy visit ncicap.org] [applause] ♪